


The In-Between

by leaveroomforjesus



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alpha Kara Danvers, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha/Omega, Alternate Universe - No Powers, F/F, Kara Danvers Has a Penis, Omega Lena Luthor, a smutty reward, even as an alpha kara is hopeless, it's a university au but they're both professors, probably failing miserably, there's gonna be some sex in there somewhere, think of it as a reward, trying desperately not to make this like every other ABO fic, useless gays everywhere, you're gonna have to wade through a lot of plot first though
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-06
Updated: 2019-11-27
Packaged: 2021-01-24 09:09:49
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 29,202
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21335767
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/leaveroomforjesus/pseuds/leaveroomforjesus
Summary: Lena Luthor is unmated well past the age she should be and it's starting to cause people to talk. Normally, she wouldn't care, but once she meets fellow professor Kara Danvers, she starts to question whether or not being a single omega is all it's cracked up to be.
Relationships: Kara Danvers/Lena Luthor
Comments: 157
Kudos: 2292





	1. Chapter 1

Lena walks down the aisle of the lecture hall where she teaches her Introduction to ABO Pharmacology class. The annoyingly perky professor who teaches before her rushes to get her mess of papers and laptop out of her way and shoves everything into her bag before waving at her and saying goodbye. “Professor Danvers” remains on the whiteboard, the name of this fool of a lecturer, who teaches some kind of literature class.

English professors, gag.

Picking up the eraser, she wipes away the name off of the board and out of her mind, writing her own over the ghostly lines of the other woman’s name. It’s only the second lecture of the semester and she’s intent on weeding out the students who aren’t serious. The first class was all about the syllabus and what she expects from everyone, but this class will jump right into the material at breakneck speed.

Lena watches as her students begin to filter in slowly as she connects her laptop to the projector. Her nostrils flare as all of the mixtures of pheromones and scents waft through the air, invading her senses like rotting meat, and she remembers why she hated college so much. So many hormones and people looking to score when all she wanted to do was finish her degree as soon as possible and get out of there.

She waits a couple minutes after the class starts to give death glares to all of the stragglers and the room is full of hushed whispers and a few snickers in Lena’s general direction. She knows full well that students and faculty talk about her, the unmated thirty-something professor, who would rather die than have to deal with some random alpha during her heats.

Previously, she’s had to find a substitute to take over her lectures, or cancel them altogether during those times, and everyone always knew when it had hit, because she would be gone for two to three days at a time and came back even grumpier than usual. Still, no one ever said anything to her face, even the chancellor of the university, because everyone was fucking terrified of Lena Luthor.

Rumors have been circulating around about her, some saying that she used to have an alpha, but he left her for someone else before they sealed the deal. Others say she never mated, because no alpha wanted to try and keep up with an overachieving, perfectionist omega like her. It works out just as well, though, because it usually means her alpha students leave her alone. Every once in a while, she gets an asshole alpha trying to tell her that she just needs to meet the right cock to tie her down.

This class appears to be chock-full of them, unfortunately, but she’s completely ready to put them all down a peg or two.

After her lecture, one such alpha waited until most of the class had already gone before walking up to her with a stupid smirk all over his face.

“Hey, Professor Luthor,” he drawls as he leans against the large table, “I just wanted you to know that if you ever need any assistance with _anything_, I’m totally available.” He gives her an obvious wink, which makes her want to slam his ugly nose right down into the table, but she likes her job. Most of the time.

She turns to face him with a tight-lipped smile. “Thank you, uh, what’s your name?”

“Brett,” he winks again.

“Brett,” Lena grits out, “but I don’t need the services of a young and very small,” she pinches her finger and thumb together, “alpha like yourself. I have vibrators that are probably larger and more satisfying. Thank you for the offer, though.”

Brett’s face turns crimson and he retreats up the aisle, his friends laughing at him as he runs straight out the door. Lena smiles to herself and an alarm on her phone goes off. Groaning, she checks it and sees that she needs to go pick up more heat suppressants and pheromone blockers before the pharmacy closes. As shes gotten older, the medications have become less effective, but she’s afraid of what will happen if she doesn’t take them at all.

Just as she’s about to leave, she spots a jacket on a stool next to the table. She picks it up and checks the pockets to see if she can find who it belongs to. She takes a folded up paper out of the pocket and sees a scrip for alpha-blockers and she raises her eyebrow at the name.

K. Danvers.

The jacket belongs to the English professor who teaches before her. The _alpha_ English professor. She looks at her watch and figures she has enough time to drop off the jacket at make it to the pharmacy, so she takes off toward the English department and checks with admin to see where Professor Danvers’ office is.

She scales the stairs to the second floor and finds the door that has the professor’s name on it and knocks softly. She hopes that Professor Danvers has office hours, or else she’s walked clear across campus for nothing.

“Come in,” an echoey voice shouts through the door. Lena opens it slowly and the other professor is busy entering some kind of data into her laptop, but when she sees Lena, she stands up immediately, knocking pens and an empty coffee mug off of her desk. “Oh, shoot,” Professor Danvers says, scrambling to pick everything up.

Lena looks on with an amused smile and the jacket draped over an arm. “You forgot this in the classroom.” She holds the jacket out.

“Oh! Oh wow, thank you,” the woman says as she takes the offered jacket. “You saved my life. I had something important in there.”

“The prescription?” Lena asks.

The other woman gulps and blushes. ”Yeah, you saw that?”

“Well, I had to confirm ownership somehow.”

The other woman nods and then shakes her head rapidly. “Oh gosh, I’m sorry. I’m Kara Danvers,” she holds out a hand. Lena looks at it curiously and shakes it.

“Lena Luthor.” Kara’s eyes widen slightly and Lena supposes she’s probably heard the rumors about her, too. “Anyway, I should be going. I have to get to the pharmacy before it closes.”

Kara slaps down the top of her laptop. “I could walk with you. I, uh, also need to go there myself, but you already knew that.”

Lena raises an eyebrow. “Are you sure you want to be seen in public with me? I’m sure you’ve heard the rumors.” This is what Lena does whenever she’s given the chance. She confronts the elephant in the room, the elephant usually being whatever ludicrous rumors people have come up with about her, about why she’s never mated.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I?” Kara asks with a shrug. “I don’t believe anything hormonal twenty-somethings say.”

“And what about what the faculty say?”

Kara screws her brows together. “I don’t believe what they say, either. People can be cruel for no reason.”

Lena looks Kara over. She can’t believe this woman is an alpha with her hunched posture and nervous hands. Against her better judgement, she agrees to walk to the pharmacy with her. Kara nearly knocks over a filing cabinet during her celebration and gives Lena a sheepish smile.

On the way to the pharmacy, Lena notices the looks they’re both getting, but Kara appears to be completely oblivious.

“So, you teach a pharmacology class?” Kara asks. When Lena nods, she continues. “That’s neat. I’ve actually wanted to sit in during one of your lectures to see what it’s all about. Sounds interesting.”

Lena huffs out a laugh. “You’re interested in pharmacology?”

“Yes? Why is that funny?”

“Sorry, it’s just that you lecture about Toni Morrison and JK Rowling. I didn’t think you’d be into the sciences.”

“I’m interested in a lot of things,” Kara says with a frown. Lena feels kind of bad for assuming, but they arrive at the pharmacy before she can apologize. Kara opens the door for her and she walks inside and up to the counter. She hands the pharmacy tech her prescription and waits for the normal barrage of questions.

“Miss... Luthor. You know these are essentially placebos, right?”

“Yes, I’m aware,” Lena answers, sighing.

“We have stronger suppressants if you want to try those.”

“No, these will be just fine, thank you,” Lena says, not letting her eyes leave the beta tech’s. With a gulp, the tech slides the prescription across the counter behind her and the pharmacist takes it, looking through the window at Lena and then back at the prescription. Lena’s used to the scrutinization by now, but it still annoys her that she can feel the judgement oozing out from some people. Not from Kara, though, curiously.

Lena moves off to the side and let’s Kara go next.

“Hi, Professor Danvers!” the tech chirps happily. Of course she knows Kara and of course she’s nice to her.

“Hey, Colleen. How’s the family?” Kara asks.

“Oh, you know. The same,” she giggles. Is she blushing? Disgusting. “What can we get you today?”

“Just the usual,” Kara answers, pushing her prescription forward.

“Ah, A-blockers. That’s coming up again, huh?” The tech licks her lips and Lena rolls her eyes into the furthest recesses of her head.

“Uh, yeah,” Kara says nervously, rubbing her neck. “Any day now. Want to be prepared.”

“Well, these are the strongest we have, so,” Colleen slides the prescription across the counter and the pharmacist gives Kara a little wave. She waves back and Lena wonders if everyone knows who this irritatingly pleasant professor is. “Should be ready in a few minutes.”

Lena sees Colleen beckon Kara closer and she leans in. The tech whispers something into Kara’s ear and glances over at Lena. Kara stands up straight and frowns while shaking her head and then walks over to stand next to Lena.

“What was that all about?” Lena asks, even though she has a sneaking suspicion it was about her.

“Nothing,” Kara answers curtly, tightening her grip around the coat draped across her arm.

A few minutes later, Lena’s prescription is ready and she walks back to the register to pay. The beta doesn’t make eye contact at all while she gives the total and Lena slides her credit card through the reader. The tech hands her the receipt and walks off somewhere to make herself look busy. Lena rolls her eyes and walks back over to Kara, who’s looking at the various candy bars.

“See anything you like?” Lena asks and it startles Kara enough for her to throw whatever she was holding into the air and the both watch it flop onto the floor. Kara clears her throat and picks up the candy before setting it back into its box.

Kara’s name is called before she can answer and heads over to the register to pick up her medication. Lena watches Kara pay quickly and she can hear her tell the tech that it’s none of her business with whom she spends her time with and storms off, passing Lena on her way out. Lena takes one more look at Colleen and smirks at her before leaving the pharmacy. She catches up with Kara, who still looks upset.

“Hey, is everything okay?”

“I just—I don’t get why people think it’s their business why people are unmated. It could be for any various reasons.”

Lena takes a step forward, releasing some calming pheromones, trying to placate Kara.

Kara’s nostrils flare. “What are you doing?” she pushes Lena away.

“I’m just trying to help. I don’t want you to end up ripping someone’s throat out over some rumors.”

“I didn’t ask you to,” Kara snaps and starts walking down the street in the opposite direction.

“Well, I didn’t ask you to defend my honor,” Lena yells back, but Kara doesn’t acknowledge it. Maybe she is just another alpha. She starts walking back to campus to pick up her car when her phone rings.

“_Hey, teach, it’s been a while._”

“Hi, Sam,” she answers, knowing it’s her friend, because no one else bothers to call her regularly. Mostly everyone has disowned her or pretend she doesn’t exist.

“_What’s new? Scared away any students yet_?”

Lena snorts. “Probably at least one. Had some alpha jock come up to me and offer his services to the poor, sad, unmated professor. Told him my vibrators would do the job better.”

A laugh rings through her ear. “_Atta girl. What a dick. That’s it? Meet anyone else_?”

“Sam, it’s only the second class of the semester.”

_“So what? Don’t you have, like, faculty meetings or whatever_?”

“You seem to forget I basically wear a scarlet letter on my forehead whenever I’m out in public. No one would dare come near the disgraced Luthor.”

_“Hey, it’s not your fault Lockwood was a major tool. What kind of asshole cheats on their mate, anyway_?”

“To be fair, we hadn’t quite made it official yet.”

She can hear Sam huffing over the phone. _“Still, he’s a fucking moron for leaving you and it’s my job as your best friend to tell you that you always deserved better_.”

Lena rolls her eyes and chuckles. “Thanks, Sam. And you’re pretty much my only friend.”

_“That’s why I’m the best. Anyway, I should let you go. Go make some friends and get laid, will you? They’ve got to have services for it, right? Every single person in the world can’t possibly have a mate. We’re not immortal_.”

“Yeah, yeah. Bye, Sam.”

“_Get some big alpha dick_!” The call ends and Lena sighs to herself. She’s made it back to her car and is about to open the door when she sees Kara walking across the lot. Lena thought she’d gone the opposite direction, but must have cut back at some point. She doesn’t know why, but she feels like she should go talk to her, to apologize for... whatever. Overstepping? It’s been so long since she’s had to use her pheromones, maybe that’s not how things are done now. Maybe she was supposed to ask for permission first.

Lena doesn’t walk after Kara, though. She’s embarrassed herself plenty already. Last thing she needs is a cranky alpha kicking her out of her office. Still, though, Kara has treated her with more kindness than anyone had in a long time and she’d almost forgotten what it felt like. It didn’t matter, though, seeing how Kara practically ran away from her.

The next time she has class, Kara isn’t there waiting for her. In fact, there’s no class there at all. Lena doesn’t have time to figure out why that is, because students start filtering in early. She does notice a certain alpha isn’t in attendance and smiles to herself as she sets up her laptop. The lecture goes fairly well, limited questions on the material and no one comes up to her afterward.

After she packs up her things, she walks to the English department and walks up the stairs to Kara’s office. She can smell a strong scent all the way from the ground floor and it only gets stronger as she walks toward the office. She stands just outside the door and knocks softly.

“Go away,” the wavering voice says from inside.

“It’s Lena.”

“I know, go away. You shouldn’t be here.”

Against her better judgement, Lena slowly opens the door. The office is dark and the smell overwhelms her. Lena hasn’t smelled anything like it in years. She shakes away the the feelings and carefully closes the door as to not make too much noise. Walking around the desk, she spots Kara sitting on the floor with her knees bent up to he chest.

“Kara?” Lena says soothingly while she kneels down next to the other professor. “Did you take your A-blocks?”

“Yeah, but they’re not working,” Kara replies in a low voice. “Thought I could work through it, but I couldn’t. Had to cancel my class.”

Lena nods, even though it’s dark. She knows better than to touch an alpha in the middle of their rut, so she just sits next to Kara, trying to gauge whether or not she should try the pheromones again.

Kara growls low. “You smell really good.” She huffs and makes a noise that’s almost a whine. “You should go.”

“At least let me take you to the health center. They might be able to help, or they might at least have holding rooms.”

“No, I can’t leave. I don’t know if I can control myself.”

Lena scoffs. “So, what, your plan is to just hole up in here until classes are over for the day? That’ll be at least six more hours.”

Kara full-on huffs and lets out a sound of frustration. Lena doesn’t know what she can do to help, until she remembers she’s been working on new medications in the lab on campus. They’re in the final stages of being cleared by the FDA. She’s been working on them since finishing her dissertation for her PhD and the long and arduous process of getting them approved was almost complete.

“I may have something that will help. Is it okay if I go get it and come back?”

Kara mutters a _yes, _so Lena stands up and leaves the office. She turns to walk down the hall and bumps into someone.

“Oh, Danvers, huh? Finally moved on? And an English professor, no less!”

“Ben, what the hell are you doing here?”

“Is that any way to greet an ex?”

Lena sneers. “When that ex is a lying and cheating piece of shit, absolutely.”

“Come on, Lena, it’s been years. Bygones?”

“Fuck your bygones. Excuse me.” Ben blocks her path and when he puts his hands on her shoulders, she’s about to kick him his stupid alpha dick when the door to Kara’s office opens.”

“Is there a problem?” Kara says with a low growl.

Ben looks over Lena’s head at Kara, who’s holding herself up on the door frame, looking incredibly haggard.

“No, no problems here.” He looks back at Lena and smiles. “Maybe you should help her out. I know how well that mouth of yours works.”

With a loud snarl, Kara rushes forward, gripping Ben by his collar, pushing him backwards until they hit a wall. She presses her forearm into his neck and begins to push it deeper until his face starts to turn red and he chokes and gasps for breath.

“Kara, Kara stop!” Lena yells, grabbing onto one of her arms. She releases more soothing pheromones, hoping it won’t cause Kara to turn her anger towards her, but Kara will probably kill Ben if she isn’t stopped. Thankfully, Kara loosens her grip and Ben bends over, covering his throat and coughing.

“You’ll pay for that,” he croaks, eyes red.

“You’re lucky I didn’t rip your throat out,” Kara grits, taking another step toward Ben before Lena gets in between them.

“Hey, alpha, eyes down here.”

Kara switches her gaze to Lena, her eyes wild and uncontrolled. Ben slips away with his proverbial tail between his legs, but Lena doesn’t care. She’s trying to keep Kara calm, so she doesn’t get herself fired. She doesn’t really know why she’s spending all of this time on energy on someone she barely knows, but Sam did tell her she should be making friends.

Kara’s nose is nuzzled into Lena’s neck and she can feel teeth grazing across her skin. The bulge in Kara’s pants is pressing into Lena’s leg and she’s doing everything she can not to react. She’s not about to let some rutting alpha fuck her against the English department’s wall that’s covered in old gum and tape that used to hold flyers up, so she threads her fingers through Kara’s hair and tugs a little to get her attention.

“Do you think you can make it to the science wing without attacking some unsuspecting omega?”

Kara nods and takes a step back. Lena takes her by the hand and leads them both out the door. She takes the less busy way to the science lab building, hoping to avoid running into people and they make it there fairly quickly. She uses her pass to open the door and she shuffles through a few drawers before finding some test packets of the drug.

She fills a glass with water and hands it to Kara, along with the pills.

“Take both and drink plenty of water.”

“What is it?”

“More effective rut suppressants I’ve been working on. They’re nearly cleared through the FDA.”

“Nearly cleared?”

“Look, it’s going through the last stages of reviews. I’ve been having alphas test them for the past year and no one’s died yet. Think of yourself as a test subject.”

Kara bristles at being called a test subject, but rips he package open and pops the pills in her mouth before drinking the whole glass of water down.

“How long will it take?”

“They’re fast-acting, so within the next five to ten minutes. Just try to take deep breaths.” Lena watches as Kara closes her eyes and her white-knuckled grip that she has on the lab table starts to ease up. Her breathing starts to steady and her eyes are no longer hollow and feral when she opens them again.

“How do you feel?” Lena asks.

“I feel... good,” Kara replies, blinking a couple times. “What’s in these?”

“Think of them as liquid soothing pheromones. You’ll still have a rut, but the usual violent tendencies and uncomfortableness that come with it are nullified.”

“This is incredible. You developed these on your own?”

“Unfortunately, I have to share the creation of them with Ben, the guy you nearly ripped apart. I’ve done all of the work getting them through the reviewing process, though, handled all of the testing and everything.”

“He sounded pretty familiar with you. Is he—“

“My ex,” Lena answers sharply.

Kara nods in understanding. Lena can tell she wants to ask more questions, but is holding it in, which Lena is grateful for.

“How long do these last?”

“Around twelve hours. I can probably give you enough to last the next day and a half, but you’re on your own after that.”

“Oh, that’s okay. The fact you’re giving me any is great. I don’t know how to pay you back, especially after how I acted before.”

“Don’t worry about it,” Lena says, busying herself at one of her computers. She has to keep a detailed log of whom she gives samples to, for legal purposes. Kara stands up and walks over to Lena, placing a strong hand on her shoulder. Looking up and meeting striking blue eyes and a gentle smile, her breath got caught in her throat.

“No, really, thank you,” Kara says. “I don’t know what would have happened if someone else walked through my office. I don’t understand why my rut is so bad this time around. Usually, they’re manageable.”

“Do you…” Lena trails off. She has no idea how to address this question without sounding rude or intrusive. “Do you not have someone who can help you with them?”

Kara takes her hand back and smiles sadly. “No, I um, I had a mate once, but she passed away.”

Lena looks mortified. “Oh, god. _God_, Kara. I’m so sorry. I didn’t know. I thought you were like me and just didn’t care about being mated. I feel like an idiot.”

Kara waves her hand dismissively. “It’s okay, it was a while ago.” She sits down on a stool across from Lena.

“You never found someone else?” Lena asks.

With a shake of her head, Kara clears her throat. “No. I haven’t really been looking, either. It’s stupid, but it feels like I’d be cheating.”

“It’s not stupid,” Lena says, nearly reaching out to touch Kara’s hand, but thinks better of it. “How long were you two together?”

“Ten years,” Kara answers wistfully. “Best ten years of my life, honestly. What about you?”

“What about me what?”

“Why aren’t you, you know…”

And here it is, the conversation that scares off anyone who tries to get to know Lena. She’s ready to don the scarlet letter once more, to be the family embarrassment who couldn’t hold onto her alpha. If that was the case, there must be something wrong with her, right? It has nothing to do with Ben being an awful person. Blame is always put on the omega for not doing enough, for not pleasing their alpha. So, she takes the defensive, decides not to give Kara an opportunity to judge her.

“Tried it, didn’t work for me.”

Kara looks like she got punched in the gut. “You—you just choose not to?”

Lena shrugs nonchalantly. “Yeah, turns out I’m not mate material. I’m more comfortable with casual encounters. Scratch their back while they scratch mine, so to speak.”

The look on Kara’s face spells confusion, like she’s been speaking in a completely different language for the past five minutes, but then she runs a hand through her hair and shrugs. “Well, if that works for you, that’s great.” She looks at her watch and curses. “Oh, gosh, it’s really late. You probably have other things you need to be doing.” She scrambles around for her coat, which had been left in her office.

Lena doesn’t let the disappointment show on her face. She’s just realized that she enjoys being around Kara, not being judged for who she is, for once. They say goodbye to each other and Lena leaves Kara with a couple more packets of the medication and Kara surprises her with a hug. Lena revels in it, lets the warmth from the alpha flow to her cold touch-starved body. Later that night, she spends some quality time with her vibrator, fooling herself into believing she’s thinking of anyone but Kara while she comes.

Every lecture after that, Kara always has something for Lena, whether it be something simple like an apple, or danishes from the local bakery. One time, she has half of a pizza, because she said her class got hungry, so she ordered it and had it delivered in the middle of class. Lena laughs and shakes her head, accepting a slice before she sets up her laptop. Her students send raised eyebrows and whispers in their direction, but no one dares say anything.

The pre-class treats graduate into coffees after class when Kara meets up with her, or sometimes lunches before Kara’s class. They enjoy each other’s company when it doesn’t necessarily mean more than what it is – a meal as friends. Still, they get looks thrown their way and more traditional people turn their noses up at them and Kara notices this.

“We’re getting glares,” she says lowly.

“Yeah, so what? They act like we’re the only unmated people in this city, but that obviously isn’t true.”

Kara stirs her spoon in her mug mindlessly. “No, but we’re probably the oldest unmated people in the city.”

“Honestly, who cares? Both of us were dealt shitty hands and we have to live with the consequences. How is that fair?”

“Maybe if we—” Kara cuts herself off, shaking that thought away.

“Maybe if we what? Mated with each other?” Lena scoffs. “A few days ago, you were saying it felt like cheating on your wife. Look, I’m sure you’re a really great alpha, but I am not looking for commitment, not after what happened. If people aren’t okay with that, they can fuck right off. I’m not here to adhere to their archaic views on what omegas are meant for. I’m not a breeding machine. I have my own goals, my own aspirations.”

Kara sits back, tight-lipped, and lets Lena rant across from her. More people are watching them now and Lena ignores them all, going on and on about how society has become this misogynistic cesspool of unrealistic expectations that targets omegas to make them feel subservient, but she’s not taking it any longer. By the time she’s done talking, Kara has a strange look on her face and her eyes are nearly black.

“Oh, sorry, I guess I got carried away,” Lena says, sipping her now-cold coffee. “Are you okay?”

Kara snaps herself out of whatever she was thinking and blinks a few times, her eyes turning her usual blue again. “Yeah, I’m fine. You sure are passionate about omega rights.”

“Well, yeah, the whole reason why people look at us differently is because of the societal constraints and roles we’re boxed into. You, the alpha, are the meant to breed and I, the omega, am meant to carry the pups, right? That’s it. We have no other purpose, according to whoever it was that decided that procreation was the single-most important thing for us to do. So, if I’m unmated – happily, might I add – I’m not fulfilling my duty.”

Kara nods thoughtfully. “I guess I never thought about it like that. I always thought people looked at me differently, because my wife died, not because I’m slacking on my societal expectations.”

“God, this conversation turned really glib. Sorry,” Lena apologizes, finishing her coffee.

“It’s okay,” Kara laughs. “I don’t really get to do this often.”

“I think it’s my turn to pay. Do you want a scone to go?”

The corner of Kara’s lip pulls up into a crooked smile. “I never say no to food.”

After that meeting, Lena wants to ask Kara what happened to her wife, but doesn’t want to pry. But she wants to know! Kara hadn’t been disgraced, hadn’t had some ex tell all of his friends that she was a bore in bed and that the only reason why he looked elsewhere was because he felt like his dick was going to fall off for lack of use. That’s the part that pissed Lena off the most. She knew she was good in bed. _He_ was the one who was boring, always wanting to be in the same boring position, saying the same boring things. Anyway, she didn’t know how to ask.

Lena knew her heat was coming up, but not for at least a week, so she was fully prepared to hide out in her apartment for days, testing the heat suppressants she’s been working on. But, _fuck_, sometimes she really did miss sex. Sam’s been trying to talk her into finding a fuck buddy, but she hates the tiptoeing around each other, trying to figure out what they like. She hates the newness and awkward first meetings, especially if it ends up not working out. Feels like a waste of her precious time. When Lena mentioned meeting Kara and actually forming a friendship, Sam jumped at the chance to suggest they mess around, even one time, just to see.

“She lost her _wife_, Sam. I can’t just go ask a widow if she wants to be friends with benefits.”

“_Why not_?” her friend asks. “_Maybe she’s too shy to ask you_.”

“If you saw her, you wouldn’t think that. She wears tweed jackets to her lectures, with the elbow pad things and everything. She wears glasses. She teaches _English_, Sam.”

“_Okay, fair point. But still, you like her, don’t you_?”

“Sure, in the Biblical sense.”

“_What does that even mean? You know what? I don’t really care. How many times have you thought about her while you diddle yourself?_”

Lena’s mouth drops open. “That is none of your business.”

“_Oh, so the answer is at least one. Good to know._”

“Jesus Christ,” Lena mutters. “I’m not going to fuck her.”

“_Then give me her number and I will! Do you know how long it’s been?_”

“I’m hanging up now. Bye!” Lena presses the ‘end call’ button and throws her phone next to her on the bed. Sam is the worst. She refuses to be one of those omegas who finds the first alpha they see and turn them into a friend with benefits. Lena is above that. She doesn’t need it. That’s why she’s been developing these medications, for fuck’s sake, so she doesn’t _have_ to. She can get through her heats without anyone else. But, she does wonder how big Kara is. No, fuck. She doesn’t care.

Her phone rings and it scares the living daylights out of her. She swears to god, if it’s Sam again, she’s going to throw her phone into the river.

“Hello?”

“Lena, hey!” It’s Kara, thank goodness. “So, a student gave me two tickets to the university’s next football game and I was wondering if you wanted to go with me. No pressure! I know sports aren’t your thing, but I thought it might be fun.”

Trying to sound as genuine as she possibly can, even though she despises sports, she replies, “Yeah, sounds great. What time is the game?”

“Kickoff is at seven, so I thought maybe we could grab a bite to eat beforehand and then take the campus bus back to the stadium.” Kara sounds really excited about this and Lena isn’t about to rain on her parade, so she agrees. Kara says to meet for dinner at five and they can head to campus together afterwards. It hits Lena then that the two of them have never to been to the other’s houses. She doesn’t even know if Kara lives in a house or an apartment, not that it matters, but she feels like it’s something she should know - as Kara’s friend, of course.

So, she nonchalantly tells Kara that she can pick her up for dinner instead and then drive to the stadium together, that way, they don’t have to be surrounded by students giving them the stink-eye on the bus.

“Oh, okay. Yeah, that’s a better idea. Sure!” She gives Lena her address, which she immediately looks up on Google Maps. It’s a house, cute with a little garden out front. She wonders how old the photo is, though. If it was taken before or after... “Lena?”

“Hm? Yeah, I’m here.”

“I asked where you wanted to eat.”

“Oh, anywhere. I’m not picky.”

“Okay, haggis and sheep’s brain it is.” Lena snorts and she hears Kara laugh through the phone. They finally hang up after a few more minutes and Lena actually feels content for the first time in an incredibly long time. It’s such a foreign feeling that she’s convinced that she’s going to jinx it somehow. She and Kara haven’t known each other long, so she’ll have plenty of opportunities to fuck things up.

The day of the game, Lena picks Kara up at her house and it still looks like the photo on the map, save some different varieties of flowers in the gardens. They end up going to a pub near campus and while it’s filled with patrons, most of them are too busy pre-gaming to pay them much mind. They share a basket of fries while Kara orders a burger and Lena tries the salmon fillet.

When they get to the stadium, they pay for parking and find an empty space. Lena takes a blanket out of her trunk and they walk inside together and find their seats.

“Do you want anything from the concession stand?” Kara asks.

“We just had dinner. How can you eat again so soon?”

Kara shrugs. “It’s a football game, you have to at least have popcorn or a hotdog.” She stands up and walks back down the aisle, leaving Lena behind. Looking around, she sees a few people she recognizes and catches the eye of that dickhead Brett. He narrows his eyes at her, but turns back around to talk to one of his friends.

She starts to feel a wave of nausea wash over her and a low throb between her legs. No, it can’t be. She checks the calendar on her phone to double check that she’s not due a heat for another week. Her skin feels like it’s on fire and her hands begin to shake. She digs through her purse to see if she has any spare heat suppressants or phero-blockers. At the bottom of her bag, she finds the ineffective heat suppressants from the pharmacy, but that’s it.

“Shit,” she says under her breath. She takes a pill and drinks what’s left of an old bottle of water that she had. Someone behind her takes a deep breath, sniffing the air and she starts to panic. People are beginning to notice. Lena stands up and slowly walks to the end of the row of seats, walking up the stairs to the concessions area. She tries to look around for Kara, but there are so many people there that she could be anywhere.

Ducking into a bathroom, she shuts herself in the last stall and quickly texts Kara that she’s not feeling well and needs to go home. Soon after, she hears the bathroom door creak open and footsteps creep closer.

“Kara?”

Her stall door bursts open and it’s not Kara standing in front of her.

“Hey, Professor Luthor. Miss me?” Brett says with a sly grin. “Looks like you could use an alpha’s help now. What do you say?” He’s about to step forward when two hands grab him by the shoulders and throw him into the wall next to the door. Kara grabs him by the throat and pushes him up against the wall.

“_Mine!_” she growls, her eyes dark as night and teeth bared. Brett whimpers and turns his head, exposing his neck submissively. Kara squeezes a little tighter until she smells the air and her grip slackens. Brett coughs and crawls out the door. Kara turns toward Lena, who’s still huddled near the back of the bathroom. She takes a cautious step forward, arms outstretched.

“Are you okay? Did he touch you?”

Lena shakes her head, still visibly shaken and clearly uncomfortable. Sweat glistens across her forehead and she can’t see clearly. And then there’s the glaring emptiness that she feels in her pussy, and along with it comes the incessant need to be filled. When she doesn’t answer Kara, a bottle of water is shoved into her face.

“Drink this. Do you want me to take you home? Can you walk?”

Lena answers her with a whine, drinking the entire bottle in one go. “Do you know how many people are out there? We’ll get mobbed.”

“I can go see if I can find someone with heat suppressants. I’ll be right back.”

“I already took some, but they’re the ones from the pharmacy, so they’re not going to work. God, Kara, I need you,” Lena practically screams, grabbing onto Kara’s arm. The point of contact radiates heat and she can see Kara biting down on her lip. “Please.”

“I—gosh, no, I need to get you out. Is it all right if I carry you?” Lena nods, even though she thinks it’s a terrible idea, but she’s at a loss on what to do. Their options are limited. Kara scoops her up into her arms and Lena wraps herself around Kara’s neck, resisting the urge to kiss the skin there. She can hear Kara’s breathing pick up as she walks them out of the stadium, Kara growling at anyone who looks at them.

Lena rubs her nose across Kara’s neck, letting her lips graze the soft skin and lets out a shuddering breath. She hears Kara whimper sympathetically and it just makes the emptiness more prominent.

“I want you to fuck me,” she whispers into Kara’s ear.

Kara shivers, but doesn’t say anything, marching toward the car as fast as she can.

“Please, Kara,” Lena continues, on the verge of tears. “I need you to fill me.”

“We just need to get you the stronger heat suppressants and you’ll be fine.”

They get to the car and Kara sets Lena down. Kara’s about to ask for the keys when Lena pushes Kara against the car door, cupping the hardening bulge between her legs.

“Don’t you want to fill me with your cock?” she asks as she grinds herself against Kara, whose eyes are screwed shut. With a frustrated snarl, Kara pushes her back a few inches and asks for the keys. When Lena tries to get close again, Kara takes her by the shoulders and pushes her against the car with a little too much force.

“Keys,” she says, baring her teeth.

Lena pulls them out of her purse and hands them to Kara, exposing her neck and rotating her hips into nothing. Kara unlocks the car doors and opens the passenger side for Lena, the climbs into the driver’s seat.

“Lena, I need your address.”

She gives it and Kara speeds off, driving in the direction of Lena’s apartment as quickly as she can. Lena rubs her thighs together with a desperate sob, but nothing can soothe the discomfort she feels. She shoves a hand down her pants and starts rubbing her clit, whining and feeling all of her muscles tightening up.

Beside her, Kara’s nostrils flare and she grips the steering wheel so hard that she leaves hand indentations on them. After the longest drive of her life, Kara pulls up in front of Lena’s apartment complex and if it had been any other day, she would have taken note of how fancy everything was, but she had to concentrate on getting Lena inside safely.

She rounds the car and opens Lena’s door. The other woman is still desperately trying to ease the throbbing need she feels, but her hand just isn’t cutting it. Kara grabs Lena’s purse and holds the woman close to her while she tries to figure out which floor to go to. She checks the buzzers outside of the front door and sees Lena’s name at the top, so she takes them both to the elevator, which is a terrible idea. Confined space, omega in heat.

Lena tries yet again to try to get Kara to put her hands on the her, but Kara has the highest discipline Lena has ever seen and it’s aggravating as all hell. They get to the top floor and Kara unlocks the door, leading Lena to lie down on the couch.

“Where are your suppressants?”

“Bathroom, down the hall.” Kara walks where she’s directed and Lena can hear rattling and the sound of water running. She comes back out, stops at the kitchen and grabs a glass of water before kneeling in front of Lena.

“Here,” she says, offering the pills and water. Lena reluctantly takes them and gulps down the water.

“You know you want this, Professor Danvers,” Lena says, once again reaching out for Kara crotch.

Kara shakes her head and moves Lena’s hand away. “You’re not thinking clearly. Get some rest and I’ll check up on you in the morning.” She lays the blanket that was draped over the back of the couch across Lena’s body and sets down another dose of heat suppressants and phero-blockers on the coffee table. Kara must have given her the fast-acting tablets, because she’s already starting to calm down and her temperature is decreasing. Before long, she’s drifting off to sleep knowing she’s going to have a full day of damage control ahead of her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all of the comments and kudos. Every one is appreciated.

Lena wakes up to the sound of her phone buzzing loudly on the coffee table. She notices the heat suppressant and phero-blockers next to a glass of water and she groans when she realizes the night before wasn’t a dream. She takes the pills and drinks all of the water. Picking up her phone, she has a couple text messages from Sam and one from Kara, asking how she’s feeling. She answers Kara first and says she’s fine, thanking her for bringing her home without incident.

Sam’s texts, however, are lewd and asking if she’s screwed the English professor yet, assuming she has, since she never replied. She calls Sam back and is greeted with a high-pitched screech that does nothing to soothe Lena’s headache.

“Good morning, Sam,” she mutters, closing her eyes and rubbing her forehead.

“_So, you did it? You finally fucked the English teacher?_”

“No, Sam, I did not.”

She can hear Sam hitting her head on a table repeatedly. “_What do you mean you didn’t? You were MIA all night. What were you doing?_”

Lena sighs into her phone. “I was embarrassing myself and trying to maneuver through an early heat while at a college football game.”

“_Oh, ouch. And Kara was with you?_”

“Yeah, she uh, had to keep an alpha student away from me, you remember the one I told you about at the beginning of the semester?”

“_That asshole was there? Glad Kara was there, then._”

“Yeah,” Lena replies softly, vaguely remembering Kara growling something while she scared Brett away.

“_So, hold up. You’re in heat and Good Samaritan Danvers doesn’t try anything with you? What is she, a Shaolin monk?_”

“I have no idea, but I’m kind of grateful. I’m so embarrassed and if we had regrettable sex, I wouldn’t be able to face her ever again. I’d have to go on sabbatical.”

“_I’ve never heard of an alpha who resists a heat like that. Maybe your pheromones are broken._”

“Shut up, Sam,” Lena rolls her eyes. “Anyway, I should go. I need to talk to Kara and make sure I haven’t completely fucked up this friendship already.”

“_Yeah, good idea. If she can handle you during a heat, she can handle anything._”

“Goodbye, Sam,” she hangs up before she gets an answer and texts Kara, asking if they can meet for coffee. She receives an immediate reply and Kara says to just let her know when and where. Lena takes a shower and gets dressed, packing more suppressants and blockers in her purse. As she leaves her apartment, she texts Kara where to meet her and that she’s on her way there now. Walking allows her to figure out what she’s going to say. Should she outright apologize? Play it off as something she couldn’t control and hope they can just laugh about it? Should she question why Kara didn’t want to have sex with her? She tightens her grip around the shoulder straps of her purse and grits her teeth. No, she shouldn’t think about why Kara didn’t want to have sex with her, because it doesn’t matter. They’re friends. Alphas and omegas can be friends without fucking each other. It’s completely possible.

When she arrives at the coffee shop, she waits outside for Kara, who walks up a few minutes later.

“Hey, hope you weren’t waiting long,” she says with a bright smile.

Lena returns the smile. “No, I just got here.”

“Shall we?” Kara asks, holding the door open, waiting for Lena to walk through first. They order their drinks and sit down at a small corner table and Lena nervously picks the lint off of her sweater.

“Look, Kara, about last night—”

“Don’t worry about it,” Kara interrupts, placing a gentle hand on top of hers. “It happens, we handled it, no harm done. We’re good, okay?”

Lena chews on her lip and it all just feels too easy. She’s not used to easy. She’s used to fighting and yelling and arguing about why it’s her fault and then being replaced by a more pleasant, more subservient omega. But there she is, sitting across from the nicest alpha she’s ever met, and she’s not used to it. It scares her, makes her want to run. There has to be something to this façade Kara wears and Lena’s determined to figure out what it is. No alpha is ever this _nice_.

“So, about what you said to Brett before he bolted,” Lena says, smirking a little seductively and running her thumb across Kara’s knuckles.

“Oh, yeah, about that,” Kara laughs nervously. “I was just trying to get him to leave you alone.” She swallows thickly and stares at Lena’s hand. “Sorry if I overstepped.”

“No, no, it’s all right. Just caught me off-guard, is all, considering you’ve shown no indication that you want to do anything but have coffee and pizza with me.”

Kara knits her eyebrows together tightly. “Yeah, why wouldn’t I?”

“I’m just saying, you were awfully possessive when Brett was near,” Lena raises and eyebrow and grins.

Kara groans and covers her face with her hands. She spreads her fingers apart and watches Lena stifle a laugh. “You’re teasing me.”

Lena flips through her wallet and sets a few bills on the table and turns her head before walking off. “You coming?” Kara scrambles, adding a few dollars to the tip before rushing after Lena. They walk down the sidewalk together, checking out the different storefronts before Lena randomly asks, “When’s the last time you had sex?”

Kara trips over something and nearly knocks someone else over, apologizing to them profusely. “I—_what?_”

“I’m just curious,” Lena adds.

“Uh, well, my wife died two years ago, so probably around then. How about you?”

“Ex cheated on me three and a half years ago, so I’d say close to four years.”

Kara’s mouth gapes wide open. “_Four years?_”

“Down, alpha. It’s not a big deal.”

“I know, it’s just—well, you’re just really kind of pretty, so it feels like a waste? Oh, geez, I shouldn’t have said that.”

“You think I’m pretty?” Lena asks in a teasing tone.

Kara lets out a frustrated huff. “Can we pretend I didn’t say anything?”

“Absolutely not. Let’s flesh this out.” She holds in a laugh as she watches Kara’s entire neck turn a bright shade of pink and she puffs out her cheeks. “Is that why you always have food for me after your class? Are you hot for teacher?”

“Oh, my _god_, Lena!”

* * *

“_For fuck’s sake, suck her cock already,_” Sam complains through the phone.

“I don’t know why I keep talking to you,” Lena says as she pours over her students’ homework. Normally, she would have a teacher’s aide helping her with grading, but surprise surprise, no one wanted to be her aide, leaving her to do all the work herself. “All you do is tell me to fuck my friend and it’s getting a little old.”

“_Well, if you would just, I don’t know, _fuck your friend_, I wouldn’t have to keep telling you to._”

“I’m not going to—you know what? I’m going to stop talking about this, because Kara will be here any minute and the last thing I need her to do is walk in on me talking about sleeping with her.”

“Sleeping with who?” Kara asks as she stands in the doorway.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake. I’ll talk to you later, Sam.” She hangs up the phone. “Kara, hi. Sorry about that. Sam loves giving me a hard time about my sex life and thinks it’s her business.”

“It’s okay,” Kara replies. “Honestly, though, you really should think about finding someone, even a… what do you call them, friend with perks?”

“Friend with benefits?”

“Yeah, that! I know you don’t think you need anyone, but someone like you shouldn’t be alone.”

Lena snorts and moves a completed graded paper to the finished pile. “I’m not alone, I have you. And I have Sam, unfortunately.”

“Yeah, but, don’t you want something more? Like, a companion?”

“Don’t you?” Lena asks, looking up and staring into Kara’s eyes, challenging her to answer.

Kara clears her throat and breaks eye contact. “Eventually, sure, but we’ve talked about this. I’m well past the age where alphas find their mate, so chances of me finding an unmated omega are getting lower and lower.”

“Surely, there’s some kind of dating service for widows or people whose mates didn’t work out. Society can’t possibly be that cruel.” Lena starts typing something into her computer and lets out an _ah ha_! She turns her monitor around and points. “See? Date Mates, specifically curated for those who’ve lost mates in one way or another.”

Kara reads through the description and looks like she’s in physical pain at the thought of dating. “I don’t know. I don’t even remember how to date.”

“It’s easy. You meet someone for dinner and possibly drinks, find out your likes and dislikes, and if you’re lucky, you sleep with them at the end of the night.”

Kara fiddles with her hands nervously and Lena takes pity on her.

“Okay, here, I’ll make you a quick profile. You can decide whether or not you want to use it, okay?”

“Okay,” Kara replies, still sounding unsure about the whole thing. Lena types away happily, answering all of the survey questions that will decide what kind of omegas Kara is looking for. She realizes that all of the answers end up being omegas like her, but that’s neither here nor there.

“Smile,” Lena says, pointing her phone at Kara’s face. Kara smiles awkwardly and Lena can’t help but grin. She uploads the photo and texts Kara the login information. “There we go, you’re officially on the market.”

“You seriously made my password Hot4Teacher?”

Lena laughs. “You can change it. Just thought that would be easy to remember. Anyway, I’m sure you’re hungry.”

“I’m always hungry,” Kara says lightly, putting her phone back in her pocket, grabbing Lena’s coat off of the rack and holding it open for her. Lena steps into it and shrugs it onto her shoulders, walking out the door while Kara holds it open for her. She decides this is for the best. Kara can find someone to date and she can stop worrying about her friend. Right.

* * *

Organizing Kara’s dating profile is the worst thing she’s ever done. Not only does she have access to it, she actually never logged out, so she can see _everything._ She knows she shouldn’t. It’s invading Kara’s privacy big time, but she uses the excuse that she’s helping Kara screen these desperate omegas and finding ones that are good enough for her. So far, none of them have been good enough. She and Kara have been spending less time together, because of all the dates Kara’s been going on, which is perfectly fine with Lena. She doesn’t care, at all. But when Kara slumps onto her couch after yet another failed date, she has to hear all about it.

“She was all over me, all night. It was a nightmare. I don’t know if she was on her heat, or what, but the website rules state that you’re not supposed to go on a first date while you’re on your heat or rut. No idea how they’re going to enforce that, but yikes.”

“So, you didn’t…” Lena asks, hoping the answer is no.

“God no, I went home right after dinner, even though she practically jumped me in the bathroom. I’m telling you, some of these omegas have absolutely no boundaries.”

Speaking of boundaries, they never spoke about the incident at the football game again, which Lena is eternally grateful for. Ever since then, Lena’s made sure that she has heat suppressants and phero-blockers on her person at all times. She still isn’t sure what triggered the early heat, but it hasn’t happened since and she went back to her regular schedule.

“I don’t think dating is for me,” Kara says, looking incredibly defeated.

“Oh, come on, Kara. Try one more. Here, hand me your phone.” Kara does so and Lena flips through a few choices. “What about her? She seems nice. Athletic, has a pet dog, kindergarten teacher, bakes as a hobby.”

Kara glances over at the phone and Lena notices the slight change in Kara’s posture. “Lucy Lane. She’s cute, I guess.”

“God, you’re hopeless. I’m sending her a message. If this one doesn’t work out, you can give up. Deal?”

“Fine,” Kara pouts. Her phone dings and Lena hands it back.

“You’re all set. Date on Friday, seven o’clock, Italian restaurant on Fifth Street.”

* * *

It’s midnight on Friday and Lena berates herself for being such an idiot. She doesn’t know why she’s staying up late, waiting for Kara. It’s not like she said she’d call, or anything. Tossing and turning in bed, she checks her phone, but there still aren’t any missed texts or phone calls, same as the last time she checked two minutes before. She even contemplates sending Kara a text, just to check on her. Her brain tells her it’s a bad idea, but her fingers have a mind of their own and before she knows it, a text is being sent.

She covers her face with her hands and exhales a frustrated groan. Her phone buzzes and she nearly falls off the bed reaching for it. Kara texted back, saying the date went well and they’re at Lucy’s place, having coffee.

_Coffee_. Is that code for sex?

Lena doesn’t want to think about it. She doesn’t want to imagine Kara hovering over Lucy, both of them naked and breathing hard, Kara’s hard cock bumping into Lucy’s thigh. She definitely doesn’t want to think about Kara kissing down Lucy’s neck, sucking tanned skin, leaving marks all over her body. She most certainly doesn’t want to think about the tip of Kara’s cock pressing into Lucy’s opening and, _oh fuck, _she’s touching her clit now, imagining it’s the tip of Kara’s dick, rubbing her, teasing her. The fingers of her other hand tease her entrance, feeling the wetness begin to pool there and running her long digits through it, coating them before she slips two of her fingers inside of herself.

She arches her back and thrusts her hips up as her fingers push in deeper. Her breaths start to become shakier and the hand that was rubbing her clit moves up her stomach to her breasts to pinch one of her nipples between her fingers and thumb. She gasps and imagines Kara biting them, sucking on them as she fucks her into oblivion. She adds one more finger, pretending that it’s Kara stretching her, begging to knot her. As her hips rock up off the bed, she feels herself getting closer and closer. Her hand moves away from her nipple and reaches across her chest to her shoulder and she squeezes, _hard_, thinking of Kara marking her and she comes with a loud scream and the sound of Kara’s name rolls off the tip of her tongue as she rides out the strongest orgasm she’s had in months.

She immediately feels shame as she slowly slides her fingers out of herself and swings her legs off of the bed, so she can clean herself off in the bathroom. When she climbs back into bed, she can’t stop herself from crying, the traitorous tears fall down the sides of her face as she tries to stop herself from sobbing. Her phone lights up beside her and she picks it up. Seeing Kara’s name on the screen makes her feel even worse and when she reads the text that says Kara’s going home now and that she hopes Lena had a nice night, Lena feels her chest burst with a feeling that she hasn’t felt in years: yearning. She fucking yearns for Kara and she hates herself for it.

Instead of replying to the text, she locks her phone, puts it on ‘do not disturb’ and throws it on her end table. She rolls onto her side and curls up into herself, wishing she’d never met Professor Danvers.

She doesn’t text Kara after that night, even though she receives texts. If she just ignores the problem, it’ll go away, right? Not if they’re Kara Danvers, apparently. She’s even resorted to showing up to class a few minutes late, saying she got stuck in traffic or a meeting ran over, just so she doesn’t have to see Kara’s face during the class transition. At the end of one of her classes, she’s packing her things up and she sees Kara waiting for her outside. She curses and walks up to her.

“Hey, Lena! I haven’t heard from you in a while.”

“Yeah, busy with midterms. You know how it goes.”

“Right,” Kara responds, furrowing her brow. “Um, well, are you busy? Wanna grab a coffee?”

Lena clenches her jaw and looks away. She knows she’s not being fair to Kara. This was her own doing, because she was trying to make Kara unattainable and now that she has, she regrets it. So, she agrees to coffee, to placate Kara and pretend that there’s nothing wrong. Maybe if she does this one thing, it’ll be good enough for a while and she can go back to being a hermit.

Coffee with Kara is, of course, not just coffee. It’s coffee, plus catching up, plus Lena trying to avoid Kara’s gaze and her asking what’s wrong and Lena lying and saying that it’s nothing and Kara not believing her. It’s Kara telling Lena that she and Lucy slept together and Lena forcing a smile across her face and Kara thinking she’s done something to offend her. It’s Lena’s reassurance. It’s Kara’s engulfing hug and scent. It’s hell.

”_You brought this on yourself, you know._”

“I’m aware, Samantha.”

“_Full naming me, ouch. This is serious._”

“I’m happy for her, honestly. Kara deserves to be happy.”

“_So do you. You’ve been punishing yourself for something that was never your fault for the past four years._”

Lena knows Sam’s right. She knows that her loneliness is self-induced. It’s always been easier to just keep people at arm’s length, so that her inevitable disappointment in both them and herself won’t sting as much, because it will be expected.

“It’s better this way,” she reasons quietly.

“_For whom?_”

“Can we move onto something else? How’s Ruby?”

“_She’s fine, passing all her classes. And no, we can’t move on until you admit that you want Kara._”

Lena stays silent, keeping those walls up and the dams closed, because once they open even an inch, if she admits how she feels about Kara, her illusion will crumble to the ground. The perfectly modeled friendship that she molded out of the clay of her imagination would melt into the truth. And the truth is, she wants to be with her friend. She wants Kara to want her back.

“Fuck. I want Kara. What the _fuck_?”

“_I know, honey. Hey, this weekend. You, me, Ruby. Movie night. We’ll eat tubs of ice cream in our pajamas and talk about anything but Kara. How’s that sound?”_

“How did this become my life? I was doing perfectly fine by myself, working on my medications to ensure that I could live a life without needing anyone else.”

“_Sorry, kid. We’re not meant to live solitary lives, no matter how much you wish it were true. I need to go help Ruby with her homework. Come by tomorrow after your lecture._”

She forgot she has a lecture tomorrow. She’s half tempted to cancel, because she really isn’t ready to face Kara after this revelation. Checking her schedule, she sees she has a test she planned to give, so she could give her students a break. But no, that’s the coward’s way out and she prides herself on facing things head-on, even her duplicitous feelings.

She shows up to the lecture hall a few minutes early, mentally preparing herself to see Kara’s glowing smile and crinkled eyes, but she’s met by a stranger’s brown eyes. She stops one of the students on their way out and asks where Professor Danvers is.

“She’s on rut leave for a few days,” the student answers, which is strange, because Kara’s never missed a lecture, even during her rut. She uses suppressants. Then it dawns on her that she has Lucy now. She doesn’t need to use suppressants if she doesn’t want to. God damn it.

Lena trudges through her lecture, passing the test out to her students, so she can have some peace and quiet for a while. She catches up on e-mails and tries valiantly not to think about Kara and Lucy fucking, but it’s the only thing her brain will focus on. She remembers the look Kara had during her rut when Lena found her in her office, huddled against the wall, trying to remain in control. And her smell, god, her smell. Lena never forgot it. Just thinking about it is making her knees wobbly and heart race. A student shakes her from her reverie as she places the test down in front of her. Lena looks up and smiles at her, her best student. Never makes any trouble, never questions her, until today.

“Is everything okay, Professor Luthor?” she asks.

Lena frowns briefly and then steels her features. “Yes, of course. Why wouldn’t it be?”

“You just seem a little sad, is all. Here, I found this outside, but you can have it.” The student pulls out a flower that she pressed inside one of her books and places it on top of her test. “It’ll look nice once it dries.” With that, she turns around and walks toward the exit and other students start walking up with their tests. Lena takes the flower and puts it inside one of her books and slides it back into her bag.

After the lecture, Lena heads over to Sam’s house just outside of town, away from the college dorms and fraternities. She knocks on the door and Ruby answers it, throwing herself into Lena.

“Hi, Aunt Lena! Mom’s just finishing dinner,” she says, pulling her into the kitchen by the hand. The smell of food flows through the entire house and Lena realizes she hasn’t eaten all day. Kara used to make sure she ate. She shakes the thought from her mind. She’s not supposed to think about Kara while she’s there, which is easier said than done. Sam walks out, wiping her hand on a towel that she throws over her shoulder and wraps Lena up in a hug.

Lena holds back tears, pushes the pain down, past her heart, filling the emptiness in her belly and it’s almost as if Sam knows, because she tightens her hold. When she pulls away, she gives Lena a knowing sympathetic look and has her sit down at the kitchen table. She brings out plates of food and Ruby helps set the table.

“I bought a ton of wine,” Sam yells from the kitchen. She brings out a couple of wine glasses and an uncorked bottle, pouring some out for the both of them.

“Do I get some?” Ruby asks.

“Not a chance, short stuff. You gotta wait until you’re older. Juice or water for you.” Her daughter pouts, which doesn’t last long, because Ruby’s lighting up and tugging on Lena’s sleeve.

“I have a report to do and I’m supposed to interview someone about their career. I thought I could interview you, Aunt Lena.”

“Me? Why would you want to interview me?”

“Because your job is cool! And you’re making medicines to help people.” Lena prays that Sam didn’t tell Ruby what medications she’s developing and what they’re for, because she is _not_ ready to have that conversation with a teenager.

“Okay, I guess you can interview me. Do you have questions already written up?”

“Yup, they’re in my backpack.”

“Eat first, interview later,” Sam instructs. Ruby frowns again and starts dishing out some food onto her plate. Ruby starts talking about what she’s learning in school and that she wants to go into science like Lena, which gives her a sense of pride. A buzz from her phone interrupts them and Lena flips it over and her smile drops. Sam cranes her neck.

“Is that her?”

Lena nods, so Sam snatches her phone up with a surprised yelp from her friend and walks into the kitchen, tossing the phone into one of the cupboards.

“There, problem solved,” Sam says, looking very pleased with herself. After dinner, Ruby asks her questions and Lena does her best to answer them. Thank goodness, Ruby doesn’t ask for specifics of the drugs she’s making and they settle down to start a movie when they’re done.

“Can we watch _The Mummy_?”

Sam takes a look at Lena and clears her throat. “Not tonight, baby. Choose something else.” Ruby ends up picking _Wall-E_ instead and sits in between Lena and her mom, big bowl of popcorn in her lap. Lena can’t really concentrate and wonders what Kara was texting her about. When the movie’s over, Sam tells Ruby to go get ready for bed while she starts cleaning up the kitchen. Lena follows her and starts stacking up the plates and putting away leftovers.

“You’ve been wanting to check your phone all night, haven’t you,” Sam asks with a teasing tone.

“No, I don’t care what she has to say.”

Sam rolls her eyes and takes the phone out of the cabinet, handing it over to Lena. She unlocks it and checks the message, her eyes flicking from side to side as she reads it. Sam sits at the table and leans back, waiting to hear what it’s about.

“She wants to meet up,” Lena sighs. “She said there’s something she wants to talk to me about.”

“Maybe she’s going to tell you she wants you, too.”

Lena groans. “Don’t do that. Don’t give me false hope. It’s probably her wanting to ask for relationship advice.” She types up a hasty response, telling her she’s free anytime the next day and Kara replies immediately, asking her to come to her apartment for lunch. “Oh, god, she wants me to go to her apartment.”

“What’s wrong with that?” Sam asks.

“It’s not a neutral location. So, either she has something really heavy to talk to me about and she wants to feel safe, or she’s going to tell me she’s going to mate Lucy and we can’t be friends anymore.”

“_Or_, you’re being melodramatic and she just wants to cook for you.”

Lean leans forward, burying her head in her hands. “This is a nightmare.”

“Will you relax? You two are still friends, right?” Lena nods, not looking up from her hands. “Okay, then as her friend, go see what she wants. If it ends up being as bad as you think it is, I’ll have a bottle of scotch with your name on it.”

Lena does end up meeting Kara at her apartment and she has a mild panic attack on the way when she wonders if Lucy will be there. Thankfully, when Kara opens the door, she’s alone, but Lena looks at Kara’s unkempt appearance and it smells like she hasn’t showered since her rut started, which churns Lena’s stomach.

“What happened?” Lena asks.

“It’s um… it’s my wife’s memorial today. I didn’t know who else to talk to, I’m sorry.”

“No, it’s okay. What do you need? Where’s Lucy?”

“I sent her home, didn’t want her to see me like this,” Kara says, nervously pulling at a string on her sweater.

“Okay, before we do anything, you need to take a shower, because you _stink_,” Lena says in a teasing manner and Kara curls her lip upward a little.

“Yeah, sorry. It’s just bad timing with my rut and everything. At least the suppressants are working this time.”

Lena internally kicks herself, because Kara _was_ taking her suppressants and she actually took the time off because of her wife, not because of her rut. Kara retreats into the bathroom and Lena listens as the shower turns on. Looking around, she starts to clean up all of the garbage and dirty dishes, piles up all the dirty laundry in a corner of the room. She’s never seen Kara like this before, unraveled, lost.

A while later, Kara comes out, hair still dripping wet, but at least looking a little better, but Lena can still smell her. She runs a hand through her hair and smiles at Kara, holding out her hand, which Kara takes. They sit next to each other on the couch and Kara curls up against Lena’s side and lets out a deep breath.

“What do you need me to do?” Lena asks.

“Just stay here. I like feeling you near me.” Lena wraps an arm around Kara’s shoulder and the alpha lets out a contented sigh, snuggling in even closer. She doesn’t realize she’s fallen asleep until there are lips on her neck and teeth grazing across her skin. Her eyes blink open and she hears Kara grunting into her ear while she drags one hand down her side.

“Kara,” Lena moans. “Kara, stop.”

“I-I can’t. You smell so good. I need—” she whines as her hips grind into Lena’s leg, her hardened cock nudging into her. She is so tempted to give into her desires, to let Kara break her in half, but she doesn’t want it like this.

Lena’s breath hitches as Kara’s hand travels underneath her shirt, touching her stomach’s bare skin, but Lena comes to her senses and pushes herself away, rolling off of the couch, pulling her shirt down. “Maybe you should call Lucy.”

Kara looks hurt, confused, and then realization dawns on her and she looks horrified. “Oh, my god, Lena. I am so sorry. I don’t know what I was thinking.”

“It’s okay, Kara. Really,” she replies, walking over to the kitchen counter where she left her purse. “I should, I should probably get going, though. If you need more suppressants or blockers, let me know. I still have some at the lab. Should be hearing back from the FDA this week about distribution.”

Kara stands up, holding her hands in front of her crotch, looking incredibly embarrassed.

“I’ll talk to you later,” Lena says from the open doorway and Kara nods, her eyes not meeting hers. Lena shuts the door behind her and waits until she gets to the elevator before she allows herself to break down.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just to address some of the comments, Lucy hasn't done anything wrong, so there's really no need to be so mean about her or her character. This is a supercorp endgame story, so don't panic.
> 
> I really do appreciate how invested you all are, though, so thank you.

Kara’s tried to reach out to Lena since that awkward night at her apartment, but Lena can’t bring herself to answer, let alone acknowledge what happened. She wonders if she would have let Kara fuck her if Lucy wasn’t in the picture. Yes, of course the answer was yes, and she hates herself for it. The fact that she would do this for Kara after so many years of not wanting to be with anyone, not wanting anyone to touch her, makes her so unbearably angry. Why her? Why Kara?

She’s been ignoring Sam for just as long, too. She doesn’t need to hear the _I told you so’s_ or _you should have listened to me’s_. If she can just get back to how things were before the semester, back to being okay with being alone, she’ll be fine. Most of her time is spent in the lab, trying to get her medications ready for distribution. She hasn’t seen or heard from Ben since that day in the English department hallway, but she knows he’ll show up once the pharmaceutical companies start their bidding war.

She shares the lab with other faculty members and students, so she doesn’t pay any mind when she hears the door open. Paperwork is thrown all across the lab bench as she tries to figure out exactly what she needs to submit.

“Lena?”

She freezes and practically snaps her pen in half. Rolling her shoulders back, she turns her stool around and sees Kara standing there, biting down on her bottom lip and her eyebrows pulled together to form a crinkle.

“What are you doing here?” Lena asks, a little firmer than she intended.

“Can we talk somewhere?”

“I’m kind of busy here, Kara. I’ve got a lot of paperwork to get through.”

“Oh, oh yeah. I saw that your medication’s going through preliminary bids. Congratulations,” Kara says with a gentle smile. When Lena doesn’t return her smile, she looks down at the floor again. “Um, I just wanted you to know that I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable the other night. I took my suppressants and I don’t know why they didn’t work. It-it won’t happen again, I promise.”

It won’t happen again, because Lena won’t let it. She’s seconds away from cutting off Kara completely, which is most likely a knee-jerk reaction to her trying to convince herself that she’s better off alone, but seeing Kara there in front of her, looking completely dismantled and extraordinarily sad, she can’t help but forget everything she just told herself and forgive.

“Don’t worry about it. Really,” she says. “I do need to finish this paperwork, though.”

“Yeah, of course. I’ll see you after my next lecture?” Kara says hopefully.

“Yeah, sure,” Lena answers dismissively. Kara nods and leaves the lab after that. Lena looks around to see if anyone else was paying attention, but she’s still alone in the lab. Last thing she needs is a rumor that she’s fucking another professor.

Lena tries after that. She tries to be Kara’s friend. They have coffee together, visit each other’s offices, trying to go back to normal, but there’s still a niggling feeling deep within the veins and arteries of Lena’s heart that won’t let go of those feelings that are more than friend feelings. She even meets Lucy and she seems nice enough. Kara smiles a lot when she’s around, touches her, shows affection, everything that Lena craves. Yearns for.

One evening, when all three are hanging out together at Kara’s apartment, Lucy says she needs to leave early, because she has an early morning the next day. Lena really doesn’t want to be alone with Kara again, so she says she’s going to leave, too, but Kara stops her.

“Kara, seriously, I do need to go,” Lena tells her exasperatedly.

“Do you not like Lucy?”

Lena snorts. “What? Where are you getting that from?”

“I don’t know, you just kind of get this weird look when we’re together.”

“She’s fine, she’s nice. Looks like she makes you happy.”

“Then it’s something else,” Kara says, taking a step forward. “You can talk to me about anything.”

Lena’s lip twitches, jaw clenches. “Not about this,” she says in a whisper.

"Why not?" 

"I _can't_, Kara."

“How long?” Kara asks her, quietly, as if she's trying not to speak too loudly in case it breaks something.

“I don’t know what you’re asking,” Lena says, attempting to retain some semblance of control.

“Yes, you do. How long?” Kara is standing close enough for Lena to feel her breath as she breathes in and out slowly, evenly.

Lena shakes her head. “I don’t know.”

Kara backs her up into the edge of the kitchen bench, bracing her arms on each of Lena’s sides and stares at her intensely, her nostrils flaring every few seconds. “Tell me,” she demands with a low growl, her face inches from Lena’s.

“After the football game, when you chased Brett away.”

Kara backs away a little and knits her brows in confusion. “Before I was with Lucy? But-but you were the one who pushed me to start dating. _You_ wanted this. I don’t understand.”

“I thought that if I made you unattainable, I wouldn’t feel anything anymore. I didn’t want to feel something for you.”

Kara looks hurt. “Why? What’s so bad about me?”

Lena laughs humorlessly. “Nothing, that’s the problem. You’re everything an omega would ever want in an alpha, but you deserve better than me. I’ve been alone so long for a reason.”

“Don’t you think that’s a conclusion I should have been able to come up with on my own? Lena, you—you’re an amazing person. You’re smart, thoughtful, you’re developing these new medicines.”

“That was done selfishly, so I wouldn’t need anyone else.”

“Okay, but it’s still going to help a lot of people.” Kara places her hands on Lena’s shoulders, the moves her hands up to cup her cheeks. “You need to stop chasing people away, thinking you’re not worthy, because you are. Who cares if you aren’t mated? Isn’t that what we said? It doesn’t matter. Someone is going to treat you the way you deserve to be treated.”

“But not you, right?”

Kara frowns and drops her hands. “I’m with Lucy. You made sure of that,” sounding more disappointed than accusatory. “Look, Lena, you’re my friend - my best friend - and I don’t want to lose you, but if this is too hard and you can’t see me anymore, I’ll understand.”

”Do you want to mate Lucy?”

Kara looks like she just got punched in the gut. Her face twists as she searches for an answer, an answer that should be easy, but when she opens her mouth, nothing comes out.

“It’s a yes or no question, Kara.”

“I don’t know,” she whispers and shakes her head. “I like her a lot, but—I don’t know.”

“That’s probably something you should figure out,” Lena says, turning to leave.

“Yeah. I’ll, uh, give you some space.” Kara moves out of her way. Lena's missed her chance and she knows it. Kara was right, this was her doing and in her attempt to protect herself, she pushed Kara away and right into Lucy’s arms.

Lena holds back the tears that threaten to pour out while she grabs her bag and opens the door to Kara's apartment. She has to present in front of a board to sell her medications in the morning, so she should probably prepare. Or, she can just go home and lie in bed and think about Kara mating Lucy out of spite. Either scenario ends the same way: with Lena alone.

In the morning, Lena gets ready for the bidding panel, choosing to wear a modest teal dress with black heels. She pulls her hair back into a tight bun and applies the wine-colored lipstick. She gathers her laptop and all of the paperwork she slaved over the night before, grabbing a muffin off of her counter before locking up.

She arrives at the business office early and is led up to the large boardroom. The secretary tells her she can hook up her laptop to the projector if she so wishes. As the bidders start to walk in, Lena’s nerves begin to surface. She smiles politely at them and fiddles with her laptop, trying to look busy. Right as the last person walks in, Lena realizes it’s Ben. Dread fills the pit of her stomach as she watches him schmooze with the rest of the people and he claps her on the shoulder.

“You ready?”

“Considering I’ve been the one working on this for the past year, yes,” she says under her breath, but loud enough for him to hear.

“Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. I’m Benjamin Lockwood and this is my associate, Lena Luthor.” He continues speaking, taking over the entire presentation, something Lena had prepared herself. He’s keeping everyone’s attention while she grits her teeth from the side of the room.

By the end of the presentation, the other men and women are all shaking Ben’s hand and telling him they’ll be in touch with offers. His smug face turns to Lena and winks at her, and she wishes she could slap it right off of his face. Once everyone is gone and Lena has everything packed up, she heads for the door, but Ben blocks her way.

“I thought that went well,” he smiles pompously. “We should go celebrate.”

“No, thanks. Excuse me,” Lena answers curtly, trying to push him aside.

“Oh, come on, Lena. Have one drink with me. We’re about to be filthy fucking rich.”

“If I have one drink, will you leave me alone for the rest of my life?”

“After we sell our drugs, you bet.”

He opens the door for her and she walks out. They head to a nearby bar together and sit down on a couple of stools, ordering their drinks from the bartender. It’s dark and stuffy, and smells like old beer, so Lena is determined to finish her drink as fast as possible.

“So, how’ve you been?” Ben asks.

“I told you I would have a drink with you, not have a conversation with you,” Lena says cuttingly.

“Jesus, I really did a number on you, huh? Shit, if I knew you’d turn into this, I would’ve—“

“Turn into what, exactly?” Lena challenges. “I’ve been the same person since before I met you.”

Ben scoffs. “Oh, really? Lena Luthor, age thirty and unmated, develops extra-strength heat and rut suppressants for others just like her who are past their prime.”

“Last time I checked, you’re in the same boat.”

“Yeah, but I’ll be the most eligible bachelor once this deal goes through. It’s a lot easier for older alphas to find mates.”

Lena rolls her eyes. “I don’t know what I ever saw in you.”

“You probably saw my big cock,” Ben quips. He sobers a little and looks serious for a minute. “Look, I don’t want to hate each other anymore. You didn’t want a mate, so we weren’t going anywhere.”

“So, you cheated on me.”

Ben sighs. “I explored my options. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry, okay? I made a mistake and I treated you like garbage. You didn’t deserve that. We still make a pretty good team.”

“You mean, me doing all of the work and you swooping in at the last minute to take all of the credit?” Lena sneers while finishing off her drink. She could be free now, but she’s kind of enjoying watching Ben squirm.

“I’m willing to split sixty-forty. I know you’ve been working hard this entire time and I’ve been absent. You’ve earned this.”

Lena blinks back, genuinely surprised at this gesture and wonders what the catch is. “Just like that?” she asks.

“Just like that,” replies Ben. “If you have dinner with me.”

With a scoff, Lena is about ready to leave. “I knew it. Forget it, I’m not interested.”

“Lena, come on. You’ve got to be tired of being alone all the time. It’ll be for old time’s sake. We were good together for a while, weren’t we?”

On one hand, Lena could absolutely use Ben to forget about Kara, let him have his way. And, yeah, he wasn’t half bad in bed. On the other hand, she knows she’d be miserable and spend the entire time imagining it was Kara inside of her.

“I don’t think so, Ben.”

“All right, one more drink then?”

Lena huffs out a laugh. “Okay, but you’re paying.”

Two drinks become three. Three become five. Ben tells her about all the omegas he’s been with, but just can’t find the right one to mate and it’s giving him a complex. If she’s being honest, she does miss him like this when he isn’t being a complete tool.

A familiar scent enters the bar and Lena looks at the door and sees Kara walk in with Lucy. She swallows thickly and hopes they don’t see her, but Kara’s already smelling the air and spots her. They walk over and Kara glares daggers at Ben.

“Professor Danvers! Nice to see you again without your arm cutting off my airway.”

“Lena, are you okay?” Kara asks with a concerned look.

“I’m fine, Kara,” she replies.

“Yeah, don’t worry. I’m taking real good care of her,” Ben adds.

A snarl comes from Kara’s throat before Lucy pulls her away and apologizes for the both of them. Lena watches them walk deeper into the bar where Lucy starts reprimanding Kara.

“Let’s get out of here. Looks like we overstayed our welcome,” Ben says, dropping a few bills on the bar. They head outside and Ben walks Lena back to her apartment. When they get there, they linger outside for a moment.

“You want me to come up?”

Lena considers it for a split-second, but shakes her head. “No, I’m going to call it a night. Thank you for the drinks tonight.”

“Are you sure?” Lena nods and Ben sighs, saying, “She’s a lucky alpha. I hope she sees how special you are.” He lifts her chin with his curled index finger and smiles genuinely at her before kissing her forehead. “Goodnight, Lena.”

“Goodnight,” she answers, wondering if she’s missed another chance.

* * *

The next day is a lecture day and she can smell a scent from outside of the lecture hall. She can see others plugging their noses and covering their faces with their shirts. Cautiously opening the door and walking in, she sees the class sparsely occupied, most of the students are already gone, but a few remain, powering through. She sees Kara standing in the front, flailing wildly as she speaks. Using her laser pointer, she points at some image on the projector. The last remaining students get up and leave and Kara starts pacing back and forth across the floor, clenching her fists.

Lena approaches her slowly, but keeps enough distance between them. “Kara?”

Kara whips her head around with a low growl, but when she sees Lena, her shoulders slump. “Lena, I—sorry, I’ll get out of your way.”

“Why aren’t you taking your suppressants and phero-blockers?”

Kara presses her lips into a thin line. “They make me feel numb and I don’t like it.” She’s swaying now and Lena knows if she doesn’t do something fast, she’s going to have a feral alpha in the middle of her class.

“Kara, you can’t just run around in the middle of your rut like this. First of all, you’re smelling up the entire campus. Second of all, what if you can’t control yourself and fuck the first omega student who presents to you? You’ll lose your job. Here, take these, drink this water, and go home.” She shoves a packet of pills and a fresh bottle of water into her hands. “I swear, I feel like your babysitter sometimes.”

Kara bares her teeth and presses Lena into the desk, her face dangerously close to her neck. Lena’s heartrate increases and she tries to release some soothing pheromones and brings a hand up to start scratching Kara’s scalp. “Hey, I’m sorry. Relax.” Kara’s teeth retreat back behind her lips and she whimpers. The door to the lecture hall opens and Lena pushes herself away slowly, letting her hands linger on Kara’s forearms. “Take those and go home, Kara. I’ll call Lucy and have her check on you later.”

Kara pops the pills into her mouth and drains the whole bottle of water. Her eyes are downcast when she puts the bottle back on the desk. “Lucy broke up with me.”

“She what?” Lena asks, not sure if she heard correctly. “Why?”

Kara frowns, still not looking up at Lena. “She said that I need to figure out what I really want and she couldn’t stick around feeling like my second choice.”

Lena exhales an exasperated huff and looks at her watch. “I can’t have this conversation right now. I’ll call you after my lecture. Go home, Kara.” She finally picks up her coat and laptop and leaves. If the students heard anything, none of them say a word, but the student who gave Lena the flower smiles at her knowingly.

She gets through her lecture smoothly and heads to her office before calling Sam.

“_What’s up, Luthor?_”

“Lucy broke up with Kara.”

“_Wow, really? Did Kara finally come to her senses?_”

Lena sighs and rubs her forehead. “Don’t joke around, Sam. I feel awful, like this is all my fault.”

“_How is any of this your fault?_”

“Oh, I don’t know. Maybe because it was my idea for Kara to date, because I couldn’t handle the way I felt. Then me being the source of their problems, because clearly Kara can’t keep her jealousy in check. I don’t even know why she’s jealous.”

“_You really don’t know?_”

Lena sits back in her chair and drums her fingers on her desk. “No, I don’t.”

“_She’s in love with you, you dope. Or at least she wants to mate you. I don’t know how alphas work, but it’s so obvious_.”

“What do you mean it’s obvious? Why didn’t you say anything before?”

“_I thought you knew! Honestly, Lena, you’re hopeless. I thought that was why you kept pushing her away, because you have this weird sense of self-preservation and anyone who shows you affection or interest is automatically treated like some anti-vaxxer’s kid._”

“Then why didn’t she say anything?”

“_Uh, maybe because you told her from the beginning that you weren’t looking for a relationship and you didn’t want to mate?_”

Lena rolls her eyes at herself. “God, I’m an idiot.”

“_You are, but you’re my idiot. Go talk to her._”

“What am I supposed to say? ‘Hey, we’re both single now. How about you stick your dick in me?’”

“_That’s a good start. Find out what you both want and if it matches up, go wild. Otherwise, the two of you just stay friends like you have been after you get over your raging hormonal feelings for each other._”

Lena finishes talking to Sam and texts Kara right after, seeing if she wants to meet up for dinner, so they can talk. Again, Lena’s nerves are trying to convince her to back out. If Sam’s right and Kara does feel something for her, her fight or flight response wants to kick in. She does feel compelled to hear it from Kara directly, though. She owes her that much, especially after being such a coward and ruining her relationship with Lucy.

They meet at a café just on the edge of campus. Lena isn’t sure if she’s supposed to hug Kara or if they’re not there yet, so she just sits down and Kara sits across from her. After ordering their drinks, they both find it difficult to jumpstart their conversation, so Kara does it for them.

“Did you have a nice time with Ben?”

“It was just drinks and he apologized for how he treated me, so yeah, it was a nice night.”

“Did you sleep with him?” Kara blurts out.

Lena gives her an offended look. “Not that it’s any of your business, but no, I did not. You know, this whole jealous alpha act is getting really old.”

Kara sighs. “I’m not—I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. It’s like, when it comes to you, I can’t control myself and it’s unnerving. I’m usually in control of _this_.”

“Of what, exactly?” Lena prods.

“These… urges. My suppressants are normally enough, but ever since I met you, they’ve become less effective and I don’t know what to do other than stay away from you.”

Lena clears her throat while tracing her fingers on the edge of her mug. “Well, if that’s what you want.”

“No, it’s not what I want!” Her raised voice turns a few heads and she mutters an apology.

“Hey,” Lena says, reaching out to touch Kara’s hand. “You’re at the tail end of a rut and you’ve just gone through a break-up. You’re probably rebounding hard and may not be thinking clearly. We can talk about this another time and you can tell me what you’re feeling, all right?”

Kara chews on her bottom lip and nods, turning her hand palm-up, so her fingers can clasp together with Lena’s. Lena’s nostrils flare at the smell of Kara’s pheromones and she knows she’s not doing it on purpose, but it’s affecting her nonetheless. She crosses her legs and squeezes her thighs together, suddenly feeling very parched, imagining Kara taking her to the bathroom and fucking her against one of the stalls. Kara must sense it, so she takes her hand back and stares down at her glass over water, swallowing the lump in her throat.

“I just feel really bad about Lucy. She didn’t do anything wrong. I was trying to bend her and mold her into a shape that fit into my heart, but no matter what I did, she just wouldn’t fit. In the end, I knew I couldn’t stay with her. It wasn’t fair to her. And she even told me, I need to figure out who I really want and stop imagining that she’s someone else.”

“Maybe after you give her some time, she’ll still want to be friends.”

“Maybe,” Kara concedes. “I don’t know, I may have hurt her too deeply.”

“It’s nearly impossible not to forgive you, so I’m sure she’ll come around,” Lena says with a slight smile and Kara smiles back.

This continues for the next few weeks. They meet for coffee or lunch every so often, letting the pain and shame of Kara’s break-up dissipate gradually. Lucy and Kara start talking again, so that relieves some of Lena’s guilt, although, she can’t help but think they’ll get back together once they realize that they’re good for each other and Lena’s nothing but a disease. It doesn’t happen, though. Kara keeps wanting to hang out with Lena and they spend just as much time together as they did before Kara started dating Lucy.

Things are almost back to normal, which means Lena is in absolute hell. All she can think about is how warm Kara is when they sit next to each other, how she can smell Kara’s scent mixed with her perfume. It makes Lena’s pussy throb with want, even when she isn’t on her heat, so she doesn’t want to know what would happen if she were.

Unfortunately for her, she finds out soon enough. She’s been instructed to surrender any remaining pills she has left while distribution is being organized, because they don’t want any of the medication going out into the public before it’s properly branded. This includes all of her trials and samples that she had leftover. All she has now are the glorified placebos from the pharmacy and she’s too stubborn to ask for something stronger. She can feel her heat coming from a mile away and she takes her phero-blockers, but her entire body feels like it’s burning. The last time she felt like this was at the football game and that ended up with her nearly ripping Kara’s pants off of her body.

This time, she’s got it under control. She’s not going to call or text Kara, not even going to speak to her. She even had the foresight to take heat leave and schedule a substitute lecturer for the next few days. This time, she’s prepared.

That is, until Kara shows up at her apartment, knocking on the door and she can _smell_ her. She pulls at her shirt and whines, rubbing her thighs together to try and alleviate the ache while curled up on the couch, but it just makes it worse.

“Lena? Are you all right? You weren’t in class today.”

Lena wants to tell Kara to go, to leave her alone, but instead, she sends out a wave of pheromones telling Kara what she really wants. She can hear a low rumble from behind the door and she wants Kara to break down the door and take her right there on the couch, wants her to rip off her clothes and feel teeth and lips and tongue on her skin.

“Lena? Can you let me in?” Kara’s voice echoes against the door. She sounds different, like there’s an unsatiated hunger within her. She sounds breathy and she’s never been more attracted to a voice before. Slowly, she rolls off the couch and walks toward the door. Her hand grabs the doorknob and sits there for a moment, knowing this is a bad idea. She shouldn’t open the door, shouldn’t let Kara in, but turns the knob and Kara is standing there, her chest rising and falling evenly, but it catches when Kara sees Lena, when she really looks at her.

“Hi,” Kara says carefully, her nostrils flaring and her eyes grazing intensely over her body. “I was—” she clears her throat, trying to rid herself of that husky voice, “I wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“I’m fine,” Lena replies, the quirk in her lip and the twitch of her mouth giving away her lie. She grinds her teeth and balls her hands at her sides to keep herself from pawing at Kara’s clothes and reaching into her pants to measure her length.

“Oh, good. That’s good,” Kara shifts from foot to foot, avoiding eye contact, because Lena knows she probably looks about ready to devour her. “You, um, have you showered today?”

Lena snorts. “No, should I? Would you like to join me?”

Kara’s eyes widen. “Lena!”

Lena makes her move. She pulls Kara inside and closes the door then pushes her up against it, grinding her hips against Kara’s quickly hardening bulge. Kara rolls her head back until it hits the door, screwing her eyes shut tight.

“I know this is what you want. There’s a reason why you we’re always drawn to each other during your ruts.”

“Lena,” Kara breathes out helplessly, placing her hands on her shoulders and pushing her back softly. “This isn’t you. I don’t want this to be how we… you know, for the first time.”

“How we what? How we _fuck_?” She emphasizes the ‘k’ as it clicks in the back of her throat, slowly reaching forward with her hand to cup Kara between the legs. A deep moan leaves Kara’s mouth as she grinds her hips down into Lena’s hand before her eyes pop open and she’s shuffling away off to the side.

“We can’t. Lena, come on.”

“I don’t see why not. You’re single now, aren’t you? Or did Lucy take you back?” She stalks toward Kara again.

“No, I—we’re not together.”

“Then what’s the problem? I’ve never seen an alpha so hesitant to fuck a desperate, needy omega before.”

Kara lets out a strangled noise and when she opens her eyes, they’re no longer the bright blue that they normally are. Instead, the darkness of her pupils has practically grown to the edges of her irises and specks of yellow dot the insides. She takes a step forward and stands above Lena, taking a deep breath.

“Do you want this?” Kara asks. Lena stares up at her and Kara nuzzles her neck, rubbing her nose against Lena’s earlobe. “I need to hear you say it.”

“I want it. God, Kara, I want you. Please. _Please_.” She’s pulling at the hem of Kara’s shirt, wringing her fingers between the fabric. With a grunt, Kara lifts her up underneath her thighs and sets her down on the kitchen counter. She cups Lena’s face in her hands and kisses her hungrily, biting at the omega’s lips and pushing her tongue across the seam of Lena’s mouth. Lena opens her mouth wider and moans when she feels Kara’s tongue curl against hers and her hips unconsciously buck into nothing.

She pulls Kara’s shirt up, causing Kara to briefly break the kiss while her shirt is rucked off and tossed onto the ground, but she dives right back in, kissing Lena’s jawline and neck, sucking her smooth skin and spreading her legs wider. Lena wraps her legs around Kara’s hips and pulls her closer, trying to do anything to relieve some of the pressure she feels, but Kara holds steady and doesn’t give her any relief.

“Kara, please,” she whines.

Kara unbuttons Lena’s pants and she lifts herself off of the counter just enough for Kara to slide them down her legs. The alpha brings her hands up to Lena’s thighs, rubbing them, bringing them higher to the junction between her legs and hips and brushing a thumb over her clit. Lena cries out and bucks her hips forward, on the verge of crying. Her skin feels electric where Kara’s touching her and she just wants to feel more.

“Don’t make me wait. I need you inside of me, _fuck_.” She rips her panties down her legs and takes one of Kara’s hands, bringing it to her soaked center and they both moan when her hand makes contact. Kara slides a finger through Lena’s wetness and drags it across Lena’s lips before kissing her hard.

She lifts her up again and takes her to the couch, lying her down on it and leaning back, so she can unbutton her pants and pull them down past her hips. Lena sits up and pulls Kara’s hardening cock out of her briefs and strokes its length.

“Do you have condoms?” Kara grits through clenched teeth, groaning as Lena rubs her palm against the tip.

“Bedroom, nightstand,” Lena husks.

Kara jumps off of the couch and runs into the bedroom, pants hanging off of her ass. She searches through the end table and finds a strip of condoms, tearing one off and ripping the foil with her teeth. Her pants have been discarded on the floor and is completely naked now. Lena’s pussy clenches as the sight of Kara’s exposed skin.

“God, yes, _yes_. Fucking hurry up!”

“Tell me again,” Kara growls into Lena’s ear.

“Tell you what?”

“_Tell me_.”

Lena looks into Kara’s eyes seeming to pierce through that tough alpha armor, the kind that makes them rougher around the edges, makes them want to claim and bite and claw at flesh until it becomes nothing more than tattered scraps. She looks right through those darkened blue eyes, brings her hand up to grip Kara’s chin and breathes out a challenge.

“Fuck me and make me come until I can’t walk.”

A rumble comes from deep within Kara’s chest as she pulls Lena further down the couch by her thighs. She lines up her cock with Lena’s cunt that’s been dripping since that morning, pushing in just past the tip and waits. When Lena nods, she buries herself inside, inch by inch, stretching her walls, until she’s bottomed out and Lena practically comes on the spot.

“Fuck, you’re so tight,” Kara’s voice strains as Lena’s pussy walls clench around her cock.

“And you’re bigger than I thought you’d be. I’m impressed,” Lena replies, trying to grind her hips to get Kara to move, but the alpha’s holding her in place with both hands.

Kara begins to move torturously slow and Lena shakes with anticipation, digging her nails into Kara’s shoulders. She knows Kara’s toying with her now, making her wait, wanting her to beg for it, but she’s not going to give in so easily. Kara’s thrusts are slow and deep, giving Lena what she wants, but not at the pace she wants it.

“Kara, if you don’t make me come, I swear to god I will tell every single person in the English department that you give out your test answers ahead of time, because you don’t like failing your students.”

Kara sits up and looks down at her with a shocked expression. “You wouldn’t.”

Lena raises a challenging eyebrow. With a newfound vigor, Kara buckles down and pushes her hips forward, finding a steady rhythm, but it’s still not enough. Lena lets out a frustrated whine and feels tears prickling at the corners of her eyes.

Kara stares down at her, continuing with her thrusts. “What do you need?”

“I don’t know,” Lena sobs. “Just have to come. Please, Kara, make me come.”

Kara adds the lightest pressure on her clit with her thumb and Lena gasps, a hand grabbing onto Kara’s wrist and throwing her hips up to meet Kara’s thrusts.

“Oh, my god, fuck—“ Lena chokes out. When Kara presses harder on Lena’s clit, that, along with the thick cock filling her drives her over the edge. Lena’s arching her back and crying out, the orgasm exploding stars behind her eyes as she shuts them tight, but then she feels Kara moving again.

“I’m just getting started,” she says, keeping herself fully inserted inside of Lena. Wrapping an arm around her back, Kara lifts Lena’s hips up to rest on her thighs and wraps her legs around Kara’s rear. The angle allows her to thrust deeper and harder, deliciously rubbing the head of her cock against Lena’s front wall. The omega’s toes curl as Kara pushes forward with a series of grunts.

“Come on, alpha,” Lena moans. “Give me everything.”

With another hard thrust, Kara increases her speed until she’s pounding deep into Lena’s pussy, the omega urging her on with her moans. Kara leans forward, digging her fingers into Lena’s hips while she pushes forward. She takes one of Lena’s nipples into her mouth.

“Oh, shit. _Fuck_. Yes, keep fucking me, I’m so close.” She threads her fingers through Kara’s hair and encouragingly scratches her scalp. Kara grunts and messily kisses her neck and down to her shoulder. Lena can feel teeth poking into her skin and she’s about to tell Kara not to bite her when she feels fingers rub against her clit and she’s screaming her throat raw. She doesn’t know how long it lasts, but when she opens her eyes, Kara’s lying on her shoulder and breathing hard, her back rising and falling with each breath.

“Did you come?” Lena asks. Kara shakes her head without looking up. Lena pats her on the shoulder. “Get up.” Kara groans and slowly slides her still-hard cock out, sitting off to the opposite side of the couch. Lena straddles her then, rubbing herself against Kara, who gasps and rolls her head back.

“Fuck, Lena,” Kara moans, gripping the arm of the couch with one hand.

“Don’t you want to come for me?” Lena husks, still rubbing herself up and down Kara’s dick. The alpha nods repeatedly and whimpers, her heavy-lidded eyes looking up at Lena, begging her to keep going. Finally, Lena grabs the base of Kara’s cock and lines herself up, slowly lowering herself, her come from her previous orgasms still dripping down her thighs. She can tell Kara’s trying to control herself and not rock her hips up into her, which she’s grateful for.

Little by little, Kara watches Lena’s pussy swallow her cock and when Lena lowers herself down to the hilt, she takes Kara’s chin in her hand, turning her head slightly to whisper in her ear.

“Take what you need, alpha.”

With a growl, Kara grabs Lena’s hips and lifts her until just the tip of her cock is still inside and slams her back down, pushing herself up to meet her with and enthusiastic thrust. For the next few minutes, Kara fucks her relentlessly, grunts getting caught high in her chest. Lena holds onto Kara’s shoulders and can feel another orgasm building itself up, but she’s willing herself not to come until Kara does.

“You’re filling me so well,” Lena moans. “So fucking big.”

A couple more pumps and Kara is howling her release and Lena eagerly swipes her fingers across her clit and is coming along with her. She falls forward, panting into the back of the couch and Kara strokes the dewy skin on her back.

“Gosh,” Kara says breathily. “That was...”

Lena sits up and cups Kara’s cheeks, leaning forward to kiss her. She slides off of her lap and flops onto the other side of Kara.

“Not bad, alpha,” Lena chuckles.

“Think you can walk?” Kara asks with a dopey grin on her face. Lena playfully slaps her shoulder and Kara stands up, scooping her into her arms. Lena yelps as Kara walks to the bedroom and lays Lena down gently. As she turns to leave, Lena whines and reaches out for her.

“Where are you going?”

I’m just going to wash up. I’m not leaving, promise.” She kisses Lena’s forehead and ducks into the bathroom. Lena feels absolutely spent, but more satisfied and relaxed than she has in ages. She hates to admit it, but maybe depriving herself of sex for so long wasn’t the best idea.

Kara comes out of the bathroom and slips underneath the covers, lying next to Lena.

“I guess we should figure out what this is,” Lena says, staring up at the ceiling.

“Probably,” replies Kara. “I’m sure you can tell, but I’m not really one for casual hook-ups.”

Lena hums. “Then I guess you’d better ask me out.”

“Like, on a date?” Kara states at her with her eyes wide as if Lena just proposed marriage and moving in together.

Lena turns to look at her then. “You just fucked the living daylights out of me and you’re put off by the idea of a date?”

“No, I’m not put off, I just... um, I’d need to think of something impressive to do.”

Lena rolls over and rests her head on Kara’s shoulder. “Well, at least you won’t have to worry about whether or not you’ll get lucky at the end of the night.” She hears Kara huff, but then she just wraps an arm around Lena’s shoulder without coming up with a retort. Lena traces her fingers across Kara’s old mate bite, still prominent and visible, and she feels her shiver.

“Mmm, that tickles,” Kara murmurs, half asleep.

Normally, the idea of letting someone sleep over after sex would scare the shit out of Lena, but having Kara there feels different. She radiates a warmth that makes her feel at ease without even using pheromones to assist her. She chalks it up to her extreme loneliness and the fact that she’s still reeling from her multiple orgasms, but she falls asleep with someone next to her and doesn’t feel like running away.


	4. Chapter 4

Things are going too well for Lena, so she knows something’s bound to happen soon and it certainly does. Her mother is in town and insists on staying with Lena, even though she has a perfectly good mansion she could stay in deep within the hills of National City. Lillian’s excuse is that the mansion doesn’t have any staff on duty, which Lena knows is a lie, because they always have staff on duty there.

She sits inside Kara’s office while the alpha grades papers and she nervously bounces her pen on the desk while reading over her students’ quizzes, but not really reading through the answers. Kara puts down the page she was grading and looks up at Lena.

“Are you okay?” The pen stops bouncing.

“Yeah, why wouldn’t I be?” Lena answers nonchalantly, putting the pen into her mouth instead. Kara reaches over and takes the pen away, Lena’s contention dying in her throat when she sees the intense way Kara’s looking at her.

“Tell me what’s wrong.”

Lena sighs. “It’s my mother. She’s coming to visit and she’s staying with me, which means you won’t be able to stay over with you for however long she’s here.”

Kara smiles at her, eyes glimmering with excitement. “I get to meet your mother? This is amazing, I’m great with parents.”

“I’m sure you are, darling, but my mom isn’t like other parents. She’s cold and pretty much hates anyone she meets, unless she can use them for something. And I haven’t exactly told her about us.”

Kara waves way her apprehension breezily. “Leave it to me, I’ll take care of everything.”

* * *

“So, when exactly are you planning on mating my daughter?” Lillian Luthor questions as she meticulously stabs enough lettuce with her fork to consider an adequate bite. Kara nearly chokes on her water as she looks over at Lena, whose expression clearly states _I told you so_.

“I—uh, we haven’t exactly talked about that… yet.” She grips her napkin in her fist tightly.

Lillian hums disapprovingly and eats another bite of her salad. She points her attention toward Lena now and picks up her wine glass, swirling the maroon liquid inside.

“You know, I can find you perfectly eligible bachelors who will mate with a 30-something omega, if you need. All you have to do is ask.” 

“No, thank you, Mother,” Lena grits. “I’ve got it covered and I’m perfectly happy with how my relationship with Kara is going.”

Lillian sets her glass down. “All I’m saying is that once you sell these pills, you’re going to be coming into a lot of money. In fact, I know quite a few of the alphas who are bidding, so I could probably persuade some of them to go even higher. For a price.”

Lena scoffs. “You’re going to _sell_ _me_? I’ve heard enough. Let’s go, Kara.” She slides out of the booth and stands up. Kara obediently follows, glowering at Lillian, but not wanting to make a scene. They exit the restaurant together and Lena’s walking quickly down the sidewalk, trying to get as far away as possible. They stop in front of a pharmacy - the one they went to when the first met, Lena notices. Her frustration is building up as she paces back and forth. “Who does she think she is? Planning on selling me to the highest bidder? She has some nerve.”

“She doesn’t think I’m good enough for you,” Kara mutters quietly, frowning while staring at her feet.

“She doesn’t think anyone is good enough. The fact that you’re an English professor is just something she can use as an excuse.”

Kara looks up, her expression pained. “She didn’t even mention my profession. Do _you _think I’m not good enough?”

Lena stops pacing and sighs. “Of course I don’t think that. You being a professor doesn’t matter to me, you know that. Hell, _I’m_ a professor.”

“But you’re also developing life-changing medicine and I’m teaching students how to tell the difference between the Brontë sisters.”

“That’s equally important. I never know the difference,” Lena says, smiling at Kara and cupping her cheek. “Come on, take me to your place. I feel the need to get railed in defiance of my mother’s attempt to control my life.”

Kara stands in the middle of the sidewalk, absolutely dumbfounded until Lena stops and turns her head, waiting patiently for the alpha to catch up.

* * *

Lena lowers the front half of her body onto Kara’s mattress, keeping her hips up in the air. She feels Kara’s hands on her, rubbing her back and shoulders, moving down to her hips and the round of her ass. She lets out a surprised gasp when she feels Kara’s tongue lick through her a few times, teasing her, and then lips wrap around her clit and she lets out an embarrassingly loud moan.

Her hands grip the pristine white sheets as she feels Kara suck her and then she moves her head, bringing two fingers up to her entrance, coating them in her wetness.

“You doing okay?” Kara checks in with her. Lena’s found that Kara does this often when they’re having sex and Lena’s grateful for it. Even though she’d most likely let Kara do whatever she wants to her, it’s nice to know that Kara wants her to be comfortable.

“Yes,” she whispers. She reaches back and takes Kara by the wrist, bringing her fingers back to her entrance and pulling both of them all the way through her without preamble. She lets out a strangled moan and Kara waits, letting Lena adjust, waiting for her to move first. Once she feels Lena’s hips shift, she pulls out almost all of the way and then plunges them back in to the third knuckle. Lena pants into the sheets and Kara pumps her fingers a few more times.

“More,” Lena pleads, not feeling full enough. Kara pulls out all the way and then slides a third finger in, Lena grunting with the way it fills her, the way they slide through her, pushing against her walls. “Please, Kara, I need—“ she chokes out a sigh when the fingers inside push on a particularly sensitive part of her pussy.

“What do you need?” Kara asks her, slowing her thrusts to a snail’s pace.

“I need your cock. Please.”

Kara removes her fingers and wipes them off on a towel she brought with her. She reaches over to the nightstand and rips open a condom, sliding it down her length with ease. She grabs the bottle of lube and squirts a small dot on her palm and she strokes herself a few times before lining herself up with Lena’s entrance.

She pushes inside slowly, Lena’s cunt already stretched by Kara’s fingers, and the omega gasps when she feels Kara’s hip resting against her ass.

“Good?” Kara asks.

Lena holds herself up on her elbows and she can vaguely feel a hand rubbing her lower back, but her head is foggy and she’s so, so full. She nods her head and feels hands move to her hips as she feels Kara’s cock start to pull out. The pace that’s set is slow at first, letting her get used to the different size, but she doesn’t need slow.

“Harder,” she moans, and with a decisive grunt, Kara surges forward, filling Lena completely and then pulls out to repeat the process, thrusting harder and digging her fingers into Lena’s skin that will surely bruise. Kara keeps fucking her, bending over so that her breasts are flush against Lena’s back. One hand holds her stomach and the other moves up to her throat, gently cradling it.

Lena lets out a strangled cry when she feels Kara’s teeth on the skin of her neck, biting her there and driving her cock as deep as it will go.

“Oh god, _fuck_... yes, keep fucking me like that,” Lena begs.

“You’re taking me so well,” Kara praises. “You’re so good.” Lena’s arms give out and her face is flat against the mattress, her hands gripping the edge of the bed. Kara holds her up by her hips and drives her cock in at a different angle that makes Lena yell. 

“Fuck, _yes, yes, right there_... please. You’re going to make me come.”

With a grunt, Kara brings one of her hands to the junction between Lena’s legs and rubs tight circles around her clit and Lena’s screaming Kara’s name while she pushes herself back into Kara, meeting her thrusts until she finally comes.

Kara’s thrusts slow down, but she still moves inside of Lena, who’s still coming down from her orgasm. She clenches around Kara’s cock and starts moving her hips again.

“Come on, Kara, don’t you want to come inside me?”

Kara whimpers and grits out a _fuck_ as she starts to pump harder, her movements jerky and uncoordinated. A hand threads itself in Lena’s hair and grips tightly as Kara comes with a choked gasp, a smaller orgasm traveling through Lena, as well.

With a shudder, Kara collapses on top of Lena and she slides her cock out slowly, rolling over onto her back.

Kara still hasn’t knotted her during her heats or the alpha's ruts, and they’ve been having sex for a while now, so the longer Kara goes without it, the more confused Lena gets.

"Why don't you ever want to knot me?" Lena blurts out.

“W-what?” Kara's eyes widen.

Lena pulls the sheet over herself and turns to face Kara. “Is it me?”

Kara whips her head to look at Lena. “What? No, you’re amazing.”

“Then why?”

Kara grips the blanket draped across her torso, looking straight ahead as if she’s trying to figure out what to say and how to say it. Taking a deep breath, she finds her words. “The last person I knotted was my wife. It was a source of frustration with Lucy, too. She didn’t understand why I wouldn’t knot her, and thought it had to do with you and my feelings for you. But for me, knotting is a big deal. So is mating.”

“You were willing to mate me when we’d just met,” Lena remembers with an amused laugh.

“Yeah, I was,” Kara replies, chewing on her bottom lip. “But then you said it wasn’t something you wanted, so that was the end of it.”

“I hardly knew you, Kara. It’s—things are a little different now, don’t you think?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

Lena brings a hand up to Kara’s cheek and turns her head, so they’re looking at each other. “My hesitation to mating is a defense mechanism. If I actively resist it, then it becomes my choice, and not just me being undesirable. You’re the first person I’ve slept with in years, you know that, the first person I’ve let get close enough to me. If it will make you feel more comfortable, we can talk about where this relationship is headed and if mating is in the cards sometime in the future. How does that sound?”

Kara smiles gently and kisses her. “What about your mom?”

Lena rolls her eyes. “Let me worry about my mother. She has no say in the matter, even though she thinks she does.” She curls into Kara and lets the alpha’s warmth surround her. Her hand lightly grazes Kara’s old bite mark and she notices that it’s been fading over time and is nearly gone.

Perhaps the sign of a new beginning.

* * *

As it turns out, telling Lillian Luthor ‘no’ is easier said than done. She’s still adamant that Lena needs to find a good, successful, and rich, alpha to mate with, trying to set her up with people. Thankfully, Lillian’s moved into a posh hotel during her stay in National City, giving Lena back her privacy. With only a few bidders left, Lena and Ben have been going back and forth between who they want to choose as their distributor. Larger companies want to patent the medication and sell at astronomical prices, where smaller companies want to distribute them widely and freely, so everyone has access.

Lena is in meetings day in and day out, while also trying to juggle her classes, so the few minutes she has with Kara while their classes overlap is keeping her from losing it. Kara makes sure to have lunch ready and gives her a chaste kiss before handing the lecture hall over to her. They’ve given up on keeping their relationship a secret from their students and some of them are highly invested in the both of them. The girl who gives Lena flowers makes sure to bring one for Kara, too.

“Dinner tonight? I feel like we haven’t seen each other in weeks,” Kara says, pouting.

Lena sighs. “I’m sorry, I have to head straight to a meeting after my lecture, but maybe I can come by afterwards?”

“Sure,” Kara says easily. “I’ll be sure to save you some leftovers.” She pulls Lena into a tight hug and then exits the lecture hall, high-fiving a few students on the way out.

The meeting after the lecture turns out to be Lillian trying to set Lena up on a date with one of the bidders, Max Lord of Lord Pharmaceuticals. Lena should have known better, honestly, but she was certain that telling her mother about all of the sex she and Kara have surely would have ended the discussion of her being mated to an alpha she has no interest in.

The minute she walks into the meeting room, she’s attacked by the sour stench of pheromones gripping onto her senses. It starts making her nauseous, but she doesn’t let it show on her face. She sees her mother sitting down with another man with a sleazy smile and an expensive suit.

“Ah, Lena, glad you could join us,” her mother greets her. “I’m sure you know Maxwell Lord.”

“Yes, we’re acquainted,” Lena replies, doing her best not to breathe in too frequently.

“It’s good to see you again, Lena,” Max says with a cocky grin. “Your mother was gracious enough to give me the opportunity to discuss the parameters of our bid.” Lena feels her ears get warm as she tries her best to be civil, but what she really wants to do is toss both him and her mother down the company’s elevator shaft.

“Of course,” Lena replies with a forced smile.

Just as she suspected, Lord Pharmaceuticals is a company that wants to sell only to those who can afford their astronomically raised prices. Of course, they’d be giving Ben and herself the highest bid, but at what cost? Lena’s intention was to make it available to everyone, so no one had to rely on others during their heats and ruts. No one would lose their inhibitions and be lowered to their basic primal instincts. She humors both Max and her mother by listening to his ridiculous spiel with no intention of choosing his company.

By the end, Lena is ready to run down the forty-eight flights of stairs to escape them, but Max blocks her way. “Your mother also tells me you still aren’t mated. That really is a surprise, someone like you not having anyone.”

“Actually, I do have someone, but we’re taking things slowly.”

Lillian scoffs. “If by slowly, you mean the alpha won’t take charge and make an honest woman of you, then indeed you are.”

Max hums and looks down at Lena with hungry eyes. “Perhaps you need someone a little more… up to snuff.” Lena makes a disgusted sound and wrinkles her nose at the mating pheromones Max is sending out like cheap cologne.

“I appreciate the offer, but I assure you, Kara is more than adequate and _all_ aspects.” She glances down at the crotch of his pants and notices Max’s smile has shifted downward. “I will be taking your bid into account, along with everyone else’s, but thank you for the meeting. It certainly was enlightening.” She pulls the door open and leaves Lillian and Max behind.

She heads straight for Kara’s house and is buzzing with adrenaline. Putting people in their rightful place always gives her a rush and she has an idea of how she can release such energy. Once she pulls up to the driveway, she can already smell Kara from outside. She lets out a deep sigh and exits the car. She was hoping to not have to deal with a rut so soon, but she’s already there and Kara has surely already smelled her.

She opens the door and lets herself in. The house is stuffy and musky with all of the lights turned off.

“Kara?” Lena calls out. She hears a faint groan in the back of the house where the bedroom is and she slowly opens the door. She sees Kara pacing back and forth across the room, clenching her fists at her sides and she whips her head around once she sees Lena. She rushes over and scoops her right up, pushing her back into the door and kisses her fiercely.

“Where have you been?” she growls lowly.

“I had a meeting, I told you,” Lena gasps throatily as she tightens her legs around Kara’s hips. “Isn’t it a little early for your rut?”

Kara nods affirmatively. “Must’ve triggered early. God, you smell so—wait, you smell different.”

“My mother tried to set me up with one of the bidders, Max Lord. He kept pumping out his vile pheromones, so it’s probably just that.” She can tell Kara’s releasing her own pheromones, likely trying to overtake Max’s inferior ones, trying to establish dominance to no one but herself.

“Doesn’t your mother know you’re _mine_?” Kara sucks the skin down Lena’s neck and she bucks her hips into the alpha’s stomach, tightening her arms around her neck.

“She does, I tell her all the time. She knows I’m yours.”

“Good,” Kara murmurs. Holding Lena up with one arm, she reaches down with her other hand to hike up her skirt, pushing it over her hips.

“Wait,” Lena blurts out and Kara’s blown eyes narrow at the interruption. Lena lowers both legs onto the ground and places her hands on the alpha’s chest. She leans in to kiss Kara softly, washing away any aggression as Kara hums. Lena breaks the kiss and lowers herself to her knees, taking off her heels and setting them off to the side. With a sly grin, she starts to work at Kara’s pants, unbuttoning them and slowly lowering the zipper. She smiles when she sees a visible wet spot on the fabric of her briefs.

Kara puffs out a breath and slides her fingers down Lena’s cheek, cupping her face tenderly. It’s an unusual gesture for a rutting alpha, but she’s grateful that Kara isn’t just mindlessly shoving her cock down her throat. Lena still feels in control and she’s going to show Kara that she’s hers. She places her hand in front of Kara’s hardening bulge, rubbing it and eliciting a deep moan out of the alpha’s chest.

“May I?” Lena asks. When Kara nods, she pulls apart the slit of the briefs and strokes the length of Kara’s cock with her hand, pulling it out of its confines. Kara grunts, bracing one arm on the wall in front of her, the other hand gripping at her bun, squeezing and then releasing. Lena’s mouth waters at the sight of the pre-cum leaking out of the head and she flicks her tongue across it, Kara’s hips bucking forward.

“Fuck!” Kara cries, tightening her grip on Lena’s hair.

Lena takes Kara deeper into her mouth, hands sliding up and down the backs of the alpha’s thighs. She goes slowly until she can feel Kara’s cock reach the back of her throat and then she pulls out, licking the underside of the shaft as she does. Lena smiles when she sees Kara’s eyes screwed shut and a crinkle between her brows.

This is a new feeling for Lena, wanting to make Kara feel good, wanting to make her fall apart. With previous partners, it was always a mutually beneficial transaction, but Lena doesn’t even care if she comes. All she cares about is whether or not she can make Kara happy.

She can feel Kara holding back, struggling to not thrust into Lena’s mouth, but she doesn’t want that. She wants Kara to take what she needs.

“Do you want to fuck my mouth?”

Kara’s eyes shoot open and she lowers her eyes to meet Lena’s. She nods rapidly.

“Use your words, darling. Tell me what you want.”

I want—“ Kara swallows thickly. “I want to fuck your mouth.” Lena sits all the way back on her knees and opens her mouth, lifting her chin to angle her head a little better.

“Well, come on then,” she replies.

“Fuck, okay. Let me know if I’m being too rough. Tap my leg if you need me to stop.” She takes a step forward, lining up her cock with Lena’s mouth and wraps her hand around the back of her head. She slides her cock in and thrusts her hips forward a couple times experimentally. Lena moans around Kara’s dick, the vibrations making her gasp, and she starts to pump harder into Lena’s mouth.

Kara holds her gaze as she thrusts, giving a satisfied grunt every time she bottoms out.

“Fuck, you’re so good at taking me, aren’t you?” Kara says through gritted teeth. “You’re going to make me come in your mouth.”

Lena lets out a throaty whine and closes her eyes as Kara slides her cock as deep as it will go. It doesn’t take her long to start chasing her release, pumping harder and furrowing her brow in concentration. Lena tamps down her urge to gag and squeezes the back of Kara’s thighs.

“Oh, fuck, I’m close. I’m going come,” Kara grunts desperately with hurried thrusts. “You gonna swallow it all, huh? Fuck, _fuck._” Lena tightens her lips around Kara’s cock and with a few more drives of her hips and a hand slapping against the wall, Kara’s coming, warm liquid shooting down Lena’s throat. The omega hollows out her mouth, swallowing every drop that she can, wanting to make Kara proud and after she hears _take it all_ and _good girl,_ she has her own sympathetic orgasm and shudders beneath the alpha, squeezing her thighs together, adding pressure to her throbbing clit.

Kara slides her cock out of Lena’s mouth and it comes out with a quiet slurp and a _pop_. She kneels in front of Lena, cupping her cheek and looking at her with concern. “Was that too much?”

Lena shoots forward and kisses her roughly, sliding her tongue across Kara’s, letting her taste herself. Kara falls backwards onto her ass and Lena takes the opportunity to climb into her lap. She grinds herself into Kara, rubbing herself against her still-hard cock and they moan into each other’s mouths.

Kara starts kissing down Lena’s neck, flicking her tongue across the smooth skin. “I want you to knot me,” Lena whispers into Kara’s ear. Kara pauses and looks up at Lena.

“Are you sure?” The alpha asks, clearly surprised. “We don’t have to.”

Lena takes Kara’s chin between her finger and thumb, tilting it up. “I want you to give me what I want, Kara. And I know you want it, too.” Kara swallows thickly and nods; Lena dismounts and stands, pulling her skirt down while Kara removes her briefs. Leading Kara to the bedroom, she has her sit on the bed. “I’m just going to get ready. I have A-condoms in the nightstand, same place as the regular ones.”

She excuses herself to the restroom, takes out her ponytail and rinses her mouth out with mouthwash. After hastily removing her already smeared lipstick, she takes a deep breath and walks back into the bedroom. It’s been years since she last let someone knot her and she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t a little bit nervous about it. She knows Kara won’t hurt her, but even so, Kara’s bigger than her previous partners.

When Lena walks back out, Kara is lying on her back, stroking her cock slowly, keeping her erection hard. She has the unopened A-condom in her other hand. Lena slides the zipper down her skirt and shucks it off, her blouse coming off next. Kara holds out a hand and Lena grabs it, allowing herself to be pulled onto the bed.

“Can I?” Kara slides her hands around Lena’s back to the clasp of her bra and she nods. She’s rid of her bra and Kara leans in to take one of her pink nipples into her mouth. Lena emits a high-pitched gasp and lies back onto the mattress. She can feel the tip of Kara’s cock rubbing against her thigh and she just needs it to fill her.

“God, I need you inside me,” she husks, spreading her legs wider. Kara sits back and rips the A-condom’s packaging with her teeth, discarding the foil off the side of the bed. She slides it down her cock easily and climbs over Lena’s body. Lena’s writhing beneath her, wanton and desperate, on the verge of tears because she feels so empty.

Kara shushes her and drags her fingers through Lena’s arousal. Getting Kara off and having her come in her mouth made her drip down her thighs. She moans impatiently, gripping the sheets around her. Kara loves seeing Lena like this, open and desperate for her. She’s usually so well put together, so closed off, but not with her. With her, Lena is carefree and protective; she’s her moon keeping her grounded.

When Lena lets out a pitiful whine, Kara lifts one of her legs over her shoulders and kisses the calf sitting next to her head.

She lines her cock up with Lena’s entrance. “Is this what you want?” she asks.

“Yes, fuck, yes, _yes_. I want you inside.” Kara slides her cock into Lena’s entrance, just about an inch in. Lena grabs onto Kara’s shoulders and angles her hips up, trying to pull her in deeper, but Kara uses one of her hands to anchor her down into the mattress. She slides in deeper, slowly, caressing the smooth skin of her leg that she’s still holding up. Lena clenches around Kara, whimpering desperately.

“You look so good like this,” Kara husks. “Desperate for me, for my cock. I’ll bet you’re going to come the second I bottom out.” Lena can only let out a ragged gasp as Kara pushes in all the way, still going slowly and lowering Lena’s leg, rubbing her hips and thighs. “There you go, baby. How are you feeling?”

“Good,” Lena replies in a whisper. She can feel Kara’s cock pulsing inside her, can feel the head bumping her cervix. Kara feels bigger and she feels so _full_; If she wasn’t lying on her back spread wide underneath her, she’d congratulate the alpha. Normally, she’d be embarrassed by the rapid puffs of breath rolling off her lips, but any embarrassment is washed away with the movement of Kara pulling out of her and a rigid jog of her hips forward, testing the strength of her thrust.

“Holy shit,” Lena gasps, tightening her grip on Kara’s shoulders. With another confident drive, Kara begins a steady rhythm, her thighs slapping against Lena’s with every forward push. Lena’s eyes are closed tight and her mouth hangs open, panting along with each thrust. When Kara’s rhythm becomes erratic and uncoordinated, Lena knows Kara’s close, clenching herself around Kara’s length once again. The alpha grunts in her ear, kissing her neck and jaw messily.

“You feel so good, so tight around me,” Kara grits through a clenched jaw, reaching a hand up to pinch one of Lena’s nipples between her fingers. With a hoarse cry, she’s coming – the mixture between the praise and Kara’s hand pushing her over the edge when she’d been concentrating on making Kara chase her release. Her thighs shake as Kara continues to fuck her through her orgasm, grunting frustratedly.

“Fuck, Lena, I need—_fuck_,” she whines.

“It’s okay, darling. You can knot me,” Lena replies soothingly, wrapping her arms around Kara’s damp, muscular back. She can feel Kara’s knot swelling at her sensitive entrance, a low moan coming from Kara’s throat. Then, Kara’s kissing her, tongue pushing into her mouth and brushing against hers. She moves across her jaw again to the junction between her neck and shoulder, the sharpness of Kara’s teeth grazing against her skin makes Lena feel calm and she mutters into the alpha's ear, voice placating.

“God, yes Kara, fuck me. You feel so good inside me. I need your knot.”

Kara sucks on Lena's neck and she can feel her pussy relaxing, breathing Kara’s pheromones in, and with a soft pop, Kara’s knot enters her. As soon as it happens, Lena can feel herself wrapping around the foreign shape and a pleasured whine erupts from the alpha’s chest as she comes, dragging Lena along with her into another intense orgasm. A white heat clouds her vision and she nearly doesn’t register the pain in her shoulder until Kara slumps on top of her, huffing out a satisfied groan while Lena threads her fingers through blonde hair.

Kara’s eyes pop open in a state of panic as she slowly remembers everything that just happened. “I bit you.”

“You did,” Lena replies calmly.

Kara tries to roll over, but she’s still stuck inside Lena and probably will be for at least another fifteen minutes.

“Ow, shit Kara.”

“Sorry! Crap, sorry.” She lies back down on Lena’s chest. “I’m so sorry, I wasn’t thinking. It just happened.”

“Don’t worry about it, seriously.” Lena continues mindlessly stroke Kara’s hair until she pops her head up again.

“What do you mean don’t worry about it? I _bit_ you. You-you have a mark! Oh, god, we’re mated and I didn’t even ask for your consent. I’m the worst alpha ever.” She buries her face between Lena’s breasts.

Lena laughs then. “Kara, I assure you, you aren’t the worst alpha ever. The reason why I’m not more upset is because I was actually thinking about asking you to mark me, anyway.”

Kara lifts her head and her mouth dangles open. “Wait, you were?”

“Yeah. It’s been quite some time since I’ve felt this way about another person and I honestly can’t imagine myself being with anyone else at this point in my life. And I’m glad it’s you.” Kara lifts herself up onto her elbows, trying not to jostle them too much. She kisses Lena gently, showing her she feels the same, wanting her to know there’s no one else she’d rather be with. Lena breaks the kiss suddenly and Kara frowns at the separation. “However, if you’re expecting me to carry your pups, you can send that idea right back to the box of ‘never going to fucking happen.’”

By the time Kara’s knot releases its hold, they’ve fallen asleep together and it’s one of the most restful sleeps Lena’s gotten in a long time.

* * *

“I feel like we haven’t seen each other in months,” Sam chastises playfully. She takes one of Lena’s fries off of her plate and sticks it in her mouth.

“Yeah, sorry about that. I’ve just been swamped with all of the medication bidding wars and trying to fend off the suitors my mother keeps trying to throw at me.”

Sam makes a face. “Doesn’t she know about Kara?”

Lena nods. “She does, but she doesn’t approve. Kara doesn’t come from old money, so she’s not good enough in her eyes.”

“Well, is Kara satisfying you?” Sam quirks an eyebrow. “You know, revving your engine?

Lena screeches and throws a fry at Sam’s face. “Oh, my god. You are the worst. Why are we friends again?”

“Because I’m the only one who will tell you how it is. Plus, you love Ruby.” Lena smiles and plays with the collar of her shirt, Sam eyeing her curiously. Then, she sees it. “Hang on, what’s that?”

“What’s what?” Lena asks, playing dumb.

“That, move your shirt.” When Lena pulls her collar down for Sam to see, her friend’s eyes widen comically large and she stands up, exclaiming, “Holy shit!” for the entire restaurant to hear.

“Calm down, Jesus,” Lena whispers, communicating her apologies to the surrounding tables with an apologetic look.

“You let her _bite_ you? And you didn’t even bother telling me right after? Some friend you are.”

“Because I knew you’d make a big deal out of it.”

Sam scoffs. “It is a big deal! You act like you haven’t been shunned by the entire city for the past three years.”

“I stopped caring a long time ago, Sam, you know that.”

“Even so, I’m happy for you. You deserve this and I’m glad you’ve chosen Kara. She’s great.”

Lena smiles thoughtfully. “Yeah, she is.”

“Okay, gross, we’re getting all sappy. Tell me how good the sex is. How big is her knot?”

* * *

Telling Lillian about being mated was a lot easier than Lena had anticipated. It was as easy as wearing a tank top in front of her mother and watching her snap a pen in half when she saw the red bite mark on her shoulder.

“So, you finally did it,” she sneers. “With that _English Professor_.”

“Yes, Mother, with Kara,” Lena replies, clenching her jaw.

“Well, I hope you’re happy,” she says, not at all sincerely. “Max Lord will take his business elsewhere and you’ll get a much more meager bid from whomever you decide to sell your medicine to.”

Lena resists the urge to roll her eyes. “I don’t even care about the money. This is about helping people. No one should be bed-ridden during their heats or ruts, it’s ridiculous. Max Lord would only sell to his conglomerate of business partners, making it virtually impossible for anyone without a six-figure salary to even afford it. People will try to create knock-offs and probably end up poisoning themselves.”

Lillian watches her attentively, almost proudly. Her lips curl up into a smile. “Your father would be proud of you.” Lena gapes at her, confusion and disbelief painted all over her face. Lillian continues, “He always was a do-gooder, wanting what was best for everyone, regardless of status. I guess he instilled those beliefs in you somewhere along the way. Your brother, on the other hand, got my unwavering need to always be the best.”

“I only ever wanted you to be proud of me. I knew Dad was, but you were always so hard to please,” Lena replies, feeling like the little girl with the tiny backpack and teddy bear who stood at the doorway of Luthor Manor, newly adopted and scared out of her mind.

Lillian sighs. “I know, I just wanted you to be the best you could be, reach your highest potential. In doing so, I pushed you away, treated you like one of my colleagues, rather than my daughter, and I apologize for that.” This is the first time Lena’s ever heard her mother apologize, for anything.

“Come to dinner with Kara and me. If you want to make it up to me and mend this shattered, sad excuse for a relationship, I want you to actually meet Kara and talk to her.”

“Done,” Lillian replies.

It’s not much, but it’s a start and Lena’s stomach flips at the idea of having an actual family to call her own.


	5. Chapter 5

“Why am I wearing this again? Isn’t it just dinner with your mother?” Kara asks, trying to loosen the bow tie tied around her neck.

“You want to make a good impression, don’t you?”

“Of course I do, but this is, like, something I’d wear to a wedding or a job interview.”

Lena steps forward and cups the space between Kara’s legs as she squeaks out a high-pitched sound. “Do this for me, and when we get home, you can do whatever you want with me. And anywhere you want me.” Kara swallows thickly and nods without a word.

They meet Lillian at an expensive steakhouse, naturally, and are escorted to one of the private booths near the back of the restaurant. Lillian’s taken the liberty of ordering wine and appetizers that are already spread across the table. Kara offers Lillian a hand to shake and the older woman looks at it with amusement before taking it.

“I ordered your favorite wine,” Lillian says to Lena, which takes her by surprise. She didn’t think Lillian knew any of her favorite things, or cared to learn them. They sit down in the booth and take their napkins off their plates. Kara looks antsy and Lena gives her the go-ahead to dig in. Smiling, Kara takes one of each appetizer and her eyes roll into the back of her head when the food hits her palate.

“This is amazing,” she gushes. Lillian briefly allows a smile to crawl across her lips, but it quickly dissipates. They eat and Kara looks the happiest she ever has with plates of food that keep being brought.

“She eats a lot, doesn’t she,” Lillian notices.

“Oh, um, sorry?” Kara replies with her mouth full of mashed potatoes. Lillian waves her off.

“It’s all right. It’s been a while since Lena’s had someone with such an… appetite.”

Lena chokes on her water and sputters, giving her mother a look. Lillian smirks at her and holds back a laugh. The rest of dinner goes like that – Lillian gently ribbing Kara and Lena, Lena being embarrassed, Kara not knowing what’s happening. By the end of the night, Lillian pays and, surprisingly, Lena agrees to make it a regular thing.

“Well, I thought that went well,” Kara says, offering her elbow for Lena to hold onto.

“It went better than expected,” Lena admits, taking Kara’s arm and snuggling close.

They finish out their semester and, truthfully, Lena’s going to miss her students. Some of them weren’t actually that bad. The girl who gave her the flower is going to be a student worker in Lena’s lab for credit the semester after Christmas break, so at least she’ll still get to see her. When she gets back to her apartment after giving her last final exam, she picks up her mail and notices a large envelope peeking through. When she opens it, it’s an offer for her to teach at a prestigious college. It’s basically her dream job. She’d get all the funding she needs for her research; her teaching schedule would be fairly relaxed so that she could concentrate on her work. Lodging would be paid for, as would any supplies she needed.

The only problem is, it’s in England. And she’d be there for at least a year. Normally, she’d jump at the chance to go, to leave National City behind. Travel to a place who doesn’t know who she is and wouldn’t scrutinize her whenever she walked down the halls. But she has Kara to think about now. She throws the envelope into a drawer and puts it out of her mind.

She and Ben finally choose a distributor for their medication. It’s a new company who specializes in distributing their products worldwide and keep their prices affordable. They meet up with the CEO to discuss the logistics and finer details, but come to a consensus and shake on it. Both Lena and Ben come out of it much, much richer, not that money was something Lena ever cared about, but the first thing she does is go out and buy a present for Kara.

Lena invites Kara over for dinner that night and while she’s waiting for dinner to cook in the oven, she walks into her bedroom to find something to wear. She’s not expecting sex, but she wants to be prepared. She puts on some lingerie and sprays herself with pheromone perfume before putting on some jeans and a loose shirt and heading back into the kitchen. There’s a knock at the door just as she gets there, so she walks over to the door and opens it. Kara’s standing there with a handful of flowers and a big smile on her face.

“Hello, darling,” Lena says as she greets her with a kiss.

“Oh, you smell good,” Kara purrs. “What’s the occasion?”

“Well,” Lena answers, taking the flowers from Kara, “Ben and I sealed the deal for our medicine and are both millions of dollars richer, so I thought we’d celebrate.” She pops the cork off a bottle of wine and pours them each a glass. They clink their glasses together and sip. “Go, sit. I’ll get dinner out of the oven.”

Kara kisses her on the cheek and sits down at the kitchen table, watching Lena get everything ready. “Are you sure you don’t need help? This is your day, I should be doing all the work.”

“You can do all the work later tonight,” Lena winks and Kara’s face turns bright red. She brings out two plates and sets one down in front of Kara before sitting down adjacently. She watches as Kara cuts into her meat and stabs a slice with her fork, pushing it into her mouth. The moan that emerges feels just like the ones she hears while they’re in bed, so she considers that a success.

“This is delicious,” Kara moans. “God, this is the best steak I’ve ever had.”

Lena smiles. “I find that hard to believe, but thank you.” She finally starts eating her own meal and they clean off their plates. Lena stands up and takes their dishes over to the sink. “I have a surprise for you.

Kara’s ears perk up. “Is it an ice cream sandwich? I love ice cream sandwiches.”

Lena laughs. “No, it’s not an ice cream sandwich, although, I did get you some ice cream.” She pulls out a fancy maroon box with a bow on it and hands it to Kara. With a furrowed brow, Kara opens the box and her eyes open wide when she sees what’s inside.

“Lena! This is—it’s a… golly. It’s a Bulgari Sonnerie Tourbillon. I’ve only seen these in magazines. Lena takes the box and removes the watch. With one hand, she extends Kara’s wrist out and buckles the watch to it. She bites the corner of her lip and feels a flutter in her chest.

“It looks good on you.”

Kara turns her wrist forward and back, watching the watch face glint in the light. “This is the nicest gift anyone’s ever gotten me, thank you.” She leans forward and takes Lena’s lips between hers, sliding her tongue across her bottom one. Lena gives off a throaty moan as her hand travels up Kara’s thigh.

“Why don’t you head to the bedroom while I finish tidying up in here?” she murmurs. Kara nods once and with a quick peck on Lena’s lips, she stands and walks down the hallway. Lena clears off the counters and puts away the leftover food when Kara walks back out, halfway undressed, holding an envelope in her hands.

“Baby, what’s this?”

Lena looks up and blanches when she sees what Kara’s holding. “It’s nothing.”

Kara pulls the documents out of the envelope and flips through them. “It doesn’t look like nothing. It looks like you’ve gotten offered your dream job. This is incredible!”

“I’m not going,” Lena replies simply.

Kara’s mouth gapes wide open. “What do you mean you’re not going? Lena, this is everything you’ve ever wanted. You can continue your research and develop new medications, all paid for by the university. You have to go.”

“It’s in the UK. I’m not going.” She continues wiping off the counters, not making eye contact with Kara. She can feel the alpha’s presence near her and Kara takes her by the chin and lifts her head up.

“Why don’t you want to go?”

“I have… things here. Things I don’t want to leave.”

Kara holds Lena by the shoulders, looking at her with sympathetic eyes. “Lena, honey, you can’t stay behind because of me or anyone else. This is a huge opportunity for you. And it’ll only be, what, a year? We can still visit each other. There’s Spring Break, Christmas and New Year’s. I can take a semester off. We can work it out.”

Lena shakes her head, eyes brimming with tears. She doesn’t know why this is making her so emotional. Kara’s right, it’s only a year, but it’s a year without nightly cuddles or kisses whenever she feels like it. She won’t have her alpha’s warmth while she sleeps. What if Kara finds someone else while she’s gone? It’s all irrational, but it’s been so long since Lena’s had someone she cares about this much and it’s not making her think clearly.

Kara takes her by the hand and leads her to the bedroom. They sit next to each other on the edge of the bed and Kara kisses her temple.

“What are you thinking?”

“I was thinking that long distance never works. It works out in the movies, but rarely in real life.”

Kara chuckles lowly. “I think it works out more than you think. What are you really worried about?”

“That you’ll find someone else,” Lena admits, blurting it out without thinking. Kara had that effect on her, made her want to tell the truth and say whatever was on her mind, because Kara was always supportive and understanding, no matter what.

Kara shifts herself, so she’s facing Lena. “That is not going to happen. Hey,” she turns Lena’s head to face her and cups her cheeks. “I love you. This mark?” She pulls down the collar of Lena's shirt until the reddened bite mark shows. “Shows how much I love you.”

“Can I—" Lena takes a deep sobering breath. “Can I mark you, too?”

Kara smiles warmly. “Will that make you feel better?” Lena nods, looking down nervously. “Okay.”

“Okay?” Lena parrots.

Kara nods at her. “Okay, let’s do it.” She lifts her shirt over her head and twirls it over her head, making Lena bark out an embarrassingly loud laugh. They both scoot further up the bed, kissing and touching each other along the way. Kara lies down on her back and Lena swings a leg over her hip so that she’s straddling her. Lena spreads her palms across Kara’s chest and feels the warmth radiating from her skin. This is the moment she’s both been dreading and waiting for her entire life.

When she was a child, all she learned from school, her friends, and her books, was that an omega was to find their alpha and their union would propel them into a life of loyalty and protection, neither of which Lena really cared about. So, when Ben cheated on her and broke up with her shortly after, she assumed she wasn’t ever meant to mate with anyone, and she was comfortable with that realization.

Until Kara.

Kara was her sun, her warmth on cold winter nights, her sanctuary, her best friend. She never imagined she’d find someone like Kara, someone she’d want to spend the rest of her life with. And in that moment, Lena realizes that by committing to this mating bond, she can go to England and teach, and when she gets back, nothing will have changed. Kara will still love her and welcome her back with open arms. She won’t be like Ben or her mother, throwing her away the second they grow tired of her.

She feels Kara’s hands on her thighs, rubbing them gently and she blinks a couple times, coming back to reality. Looking down at her alpha, seeing the halo of blonde hair circling around her face, she smiles.

“Are you ready?”

“Always,” Kara replies, smiling, buzzing with anticipation. Lena leans in and starts kissing Kara’s neck and jaw, pulling skin between her teeth and listening to the alpha hiss in her ear. She licks the areas afterwards, soothing the sting with her tongue. Her hips unconsciously grind into Kara’s stomach and she can feel her getting hard beneath her. She slowly pulls Kara’s briefs down to her knees and Kara kicks them off of the bed haphazardly. Lena sits back and strokes Kara’s cock a couple times, watching the pre-cum flow out of the tip. Lena’s mouth waters and she dips her head down to lick it up. Kara’s hips buck up, pushing her cock further into Lena’s mouth, but she’s able to compensate so that it doesn’t choke her. Taking a condom out of her nightstand, she slips it down Kara’s shaft and pumps a bead of lube into her palm, spreading it along her length. She sits up and lines her entrance up, lowering herself down onto Kara’s cock. Immediately, Kara sits up and wraps her arms around Lena’s back and kisses the valley between her breasts. She shifts her head to the right and takes one of Lena’s nipples into her mouth, swirling her tongue around the pink, hardened bud. Lena’s high-pitched gasp rings through the room as she feels herself clench around the cock inside of her.

“You’re perfect,” Kara says, switching her attention to Lena’s other nipple.

“Fuck, Kara,” Lena sighs, threading her fingers through blonde hair, tightening her hand into fists around the locks. Her hips pitch forward, wanting Kara to move, to lift her, to do anything. She lets out a desperate whine when Kara continues pinching her nipple between her teeth, sucking them, keeping her hips still. “_Please_,” she begs.

“Please what?” She knows Kara wants her to say it out loud, to tell her exactly what she wants. Her being open and honest is a turn-on and she knows it’ll make Kara fuck her harder.

“I need—_fuck_. Fuck me, please fuck me. Make me come all over you.”

With both hands moving to her hips, Kara lifts Lena up a couple inches and slams her back down onto her cock. She lets out a choked cry and Kara repeats the motion, somehow making Lena feel even fuller.

“You’re so good,” Kara says, pitching her hips up to meet Lena’s with hard thrusts. “You feel so fucking good. Such a good girl.”

The praise makes something erupt inside Lena and she doubles down on her thrusts, fucking herself harder on Kara’s cock, chasing her release, wanting to see stars behind her eyes.

“My clit—please. I need you to touch me,” she moans. She feels fingers bump against her clit while Kara’s cock continues to slide through her pussy and she can feel herself getting closer. Kara begins to grunt, indicating that she’s getting close, too, which makes Lena concentrate on her efforts, but her orgasm sneaks up on her and she’s arching her back, crying out her pleasure loud enough for Sam to hear at her house. She leans forward and slumps over Kara’s shoulder, who’s still grinding her hips up into Lena.

“Again?” Lena asks.

Kara looks up at her with glassy eyes. “If you can handle it.”

Lena smirks. “I can definitely handle you.” Kara flips them both over, still inside Lena, and she starts to move her hips again. Kara sucks on her bite mark and she hisses through her teeth, digging her heels into Kara’s back. Her thrusts are deep and Lena feels herself almost having an out of body experience when she quickly approaches her second orgasm. She pulls Kara close to her, grazing her lips across her shoulder.

Kara grunts in her ear, her momentum starting to stutter and become irregular as she chases her release. “Do it,” she commands. “God, fuck—fucking _bite_ me.”

Lena sinks her teeth into Kara’s shoulder, deep, penetrating the skin. She can taste blood and Kara’s throwing her head back and howling, tearing the sheets around them and with a few more shaky jogs of her hips, Lena’s coming for a second time, the rush of both biting Kara and having been deliciously fucked overflowing within her and she comes hard, her vision blacking out for what feels like minutes. When she opens her eyes, Kara’s still hovering above her, leaning on her elbows and smiling.

“Oh, god, it looks awful,” Lena says, bringing her hand up to touch the bite mark.

“It’ll heal,” Kara says simply. “I don’t care, anyway. I want people to see I belong to you.”

“You just want people to see how wild our sex is,” she answers with a laugh.

Kara chuckles and kisses her. “I love you. You should go to England.”

Lena’s smile fades, but she nods. “I know. Also, it’s mean saying both of those things at the same time.”

Kara gently slides out of Lena and removes her condom, tying it off before throwing it in the trash can. “I just want you to know I’ll still be here when you get back, nothing’s going to change. I’m yours now.”

“Oh, just now? After I’ve branded you?” Lena teases.

Kara rolls her eyes. “You know what I mean. This will be good for you. And when you come back, maybe you and Ben can start your own research facility.”

“That won’t make you jealous? Me working with my ex?”

With a shrug of her shoulder, Kara says, “I can take him.”

Lena kisses Kara on the cheek and cuddles in close; Kara moves her arm around her, so she can lie her head across her chest, feeling her breaths enter and exit her lungs with each rise and fall.

* * *

The ride to the airport is bittersweet, but both of them know they’ll be able to visit each other during school breaks and FaceTime while they’re apart. After they check in, Kara walks Lena to the entrance for security and looks a little forlorn, but Lena can tell she’s trying to hold it in.

“Spring Break?” Kara asks, holding Lena’s hands in hers.

“Spring Break,” she replies. “Only three months away.”

“Only,” Kara whispers quietly, ducking her head.

“I don’t have to go,” Lena rushes out, wanting to smooth the crinkle on Kara’s forehead, wanting her to smile again.

Kara whips her gaze up and looks at Lena like she just insulted her mother. “What, no, you’re going. I’ll be okay. Sam already said I could come visit her and Ruby and Ruby invited me to Sunday dinners. It’s going to be fine.”

Lena looks at her watch, the second hand ticking mockingly at her. “I have to go.” Kara nods, biting on her lip. “I’ll call you when I land.” Kara nods again, not being able to form words strong enough to leave her mouth. Lena cups her cheeks and kisses her, strong hands gripping her hips and pulling her forward, molding their bodies together. She feels a tear push through against her wishes and it tracks down her cheek.

When they break apart, Kara wipes Lena’s tears away with her thumbs and smiles at her, not the kind of smile Lena was hoping for, but one that told her everything she ever wanted to hear from a person. They press their foreheads together and Kara whispers _I love you_, making Lena’s tears fall anew.

She says it back and kisses Kara one more time before turning around to climb the stairs that lead to security. Kara’s eyes follow her until she can’t see her anymore and she composes herself, because she refuses to be one of those people who cry during their entire flight.

She has half a mind to turn around and run back into Kara’s arms like they do in the movies, but she walks forward, knowing this is the right decision for her, and reassures herself that Kara will wait for her. She places her hand on her shoulder, over her bite mark, a reminder of their bond - two previously unmateable people, trying to navigate their way through life alone, until they found each other and made the other feel like they could move on from their pasts.

As the plane takes off, she watches the buildings in National City become smaller and indistinguishable and she feels a wave of calm flow through her. She knows everything is going to be okay.

* * *

_Five months later:_

Lena hears the annoying high-pitched ringing of her phone, indicating that she has a call coming through. She accepts the call and sits her phone up against a stack of books as Kara’s bright face appears.

“Hey, baby!”

“Hello, sweetheart, how are you?” Lena answers.

“Good, everything here is good. Summer break’s almost here, which means I’ll get to see you, so that’s something I’m looking forward to. Whitney says hello.”

“Your teacher’s aide?” Lena asks, trying to tamp down the bubbling jealousy she feels. There’s no need for her to, though, and she knows that, but she can’t help but feel a little protective of Kara, because she’s always so nice to everyone. Plus, there’s also the fact that this _Whitney_ person gets to spend more time with her girlfriend than she does.

“Yeah, she gave me some treats to hold onto for you until you get back.”

Lena softens a little. Maybe Whitney isn’t so bad. They continue talking, catching up on each other’s lives. As their conversation dwindles near its end, Lena starts to feel nervous, because there’s been something she’s been wanting to ask Kara, something that is the obvious next step in their relationship. She’s afraid of how Kara will react, though, because it’s a big commitment.

“So, um, there’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you for a while,” Lena says, just plowing right through her apprehension.

“Oh? Lay it on me,” Kara says, sipping a beer at her desk, looking adorable through the pixelated image through the computer screen.

“We’ve been together for a little while now and I wanted to ask what the next step in our relationship is. I've been thinking about it a lot, about having pups, because I feel like that’s the next logical step in a relationship, considering both of us are older than most pairs, and everyone else has at least one.”

Kara stares blankly, mouth hanging wide open. “What are you saying, Lena?” 

“I’m saying I want to have your pu—Kara?”

Kara passes out and falls out of her computer chair and Lena shelves the conversation for the time being.

* * *

_Seven months later:_

Lena steps off the plane, purse and carry-on in hand as she walks through the long passageway out to the waiting area of the airport. She picks up her luggage at baggage claim and walks out the exit. Kara texted her to say she was waiting right outside for her in the car and she spots them right away. Poking their heads out of the backseat are a blue heeler and a corgi, panting happily. She throws her suitcase into the trunk and climbs into the passenger seat, kissing Kara. The corgi sticks its head between them and they laugh.

“Down, Banjo,” Kara admonishes him. “You know, when you said you wanted to have my pups, I was expecting something different, but honestly, I wouldn’t trade them for the world.”

Lena looks at her with as much adoration and love she can muster. “I wouldn’t trade any of it.” Kara looks back at her with the same love back and kisses her once more before they get honked at and Kara pulls away from the curb.

With the money she received from selling her medications, Lena’s able to open her own research facility that she and Ben have decided to co-run. She still teaches as a guest lecturer at least one semester a year, but concentrates mostly on developing new drugs. Kara decides to keep teaching and shaping young minds with Charlotte and Emily Brontë. They hired Lucy to dogsit for them when they’re busy with work or traveling and she sends them a lot of pictures of videos of their adventures.

Lillian eventually warms up to the idea of Lena and Kara together, mostly because she knows there’s no way for her to change Lena’s mind once it’s been set. She’s also silently relieved that they don’t intend to have children who aren't covered in fur, because being called _grandma_ is one of her biggest fears.

At times, Lena wants to pinch herself, because she can’t believe that his is her life. She has a loving mate, two rambunctious dogs, and a house. Kara had asked her to move in with her during Christmas break and one of her gifts was a key to the front door. Lena ugly cried before accepting and throwing Kara into bed. But it is hers, all of it is hers. After resigning herself to a life of loneliness and scrutiny, the universe pulled a fast one and threw a Kara Danvers curveball at her, someone who could make her learn to trust again, someone who made her realize her worth.

Lying next to Kara in bed after a long night of welcome home sex, their two dogs lying on their beds on the floor, Lena turns to her side, Kara’s radiant hair ticking her skin. Lena’s breaths match Kara’s own, in and out, her heart threatening to burst out of her chest with all the love that’s taken root inside of it, expanding through her veins and coming out of her pores, mixing in with her own scent and pheromones. She feels Kara drifting off to sleep and she knows she’ll follow soon after. Her last thought before falling asleep is that life has a funny way of working out. After years of heartbreak and self-induced solitude, she found Kara – her love, her alpha, and everything in between.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone who read this story and took the time to comment or leave kudos. I apologize for not replying to many comments, but I read them all and I appreciate them a ton.


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